House of Commons Commission

Local Broadcasting: Parliamentary Estate

Mr Gregory Campbell: To ask the hon. Member for Broxbourne, representing the House of Commons Commission, whether the Commission is taking steps to increase access to BBC regional channels on the parliamentary estate television network.

Sir Charles Walker: The House of Commons Commission has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Cabinet Office

Government Departments: Contracts

Angela Rayner: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether his Department has any record of public contracts being awarded to suppliers on the UK Sanctions List between 1 January 2021 and 31 January 2023.

Alex Burghart: The Cabinet Office has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Rapid Response Unit

Sir Christopher Chope: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the Answer of 1 March to Question 148800 on Rapid Response Unit, on what date the Rapid Response Unit was disbanded; what has happened to the information which that Unit collected and stored; and how many of that Unit's staff were made redundant.

Alex Burghart: The Rapid Response Unit was disbanded in August 2022. None of the staff were made redundant as they were all redeployed. The information collected has now been archived and will be retained in line with the Cabinet Office Information Retention Policy.

10 Downing Street

Angela Rayner: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the Answer of 6 September 2022 to Question 48359 on 10 Downing Street: Furniture, whether the lectern used by the Prime Minister on 25th October was paid for by the taxpayer.

Angela Rayner: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether the lectern used by the Prime Minister on 7 March 2023 was paid for from the public purse.

Alex Burghart: Lecterns are regularly used at government press conferences, receptions and speeches. These lecterns were purchased by the Government under a previous administration. As previously stated, lecterns are used and repurposed across the Cabinet Office estate and other government buildings.

Suicide

Andrew Bridgen: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many deaths by suicide there were in (a) North West Leicestershire constituency, (b) the Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland NHS trust, (c) the East Midlands and (d) England and Wales in each month of each of the last five years.

Jeremy Quin: The information requested falls under the remit of the UK Statistics Authority.A response to the Hon. Member's Parliamentary Question of 6 March is attached. UKSA Response to PQ 158917 (pdf, 105.4KB)PQ 158917 Dataset (xlsx, 24.9KB)

Cabinet Office: Written Questions

Wendy Chamberlain: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, when he plans to respond to Question 152308, tabled on 24 February 2023 by the hon. Member for North East Fife.

Alex Burghart: I tabled an answer to Question 152308 on 9 March.

Cabinet Office: Windsor Framework

Mr Marcus Fysh: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether the former Second Permanent Secretary to the Cabinet Office (a) advised on and (b) participated in the negotiations on the Windsor Framework.

Alex Burghart: His Majesty’s Government operates on the principle of collective responsibility, and the Government would not normally comment on the internal processes of how advice may be determined. Ministers must be able to speak to officials and take advice from a position of absolute trust. Naming which individuals may or may not have provided advice on a particular topic may inhibit the ability of civil servants to provide free and frank advice and inhibit the free and frank exchange of views for the purposes of deliberation.Moreover, the Civil Service Code makes clear that civil servants are accountable to Ministers who in turn are accountable to Parliament.Notwithstanding, as Ministers set out in the response of 7 March 2023, Official Report, Columns 689, it is exceptional and unprecedented for a serving Permanent Secretary to resign to seek to take up a senior position working for the leader of the Opposition. The Cabinet Office has publicly stated it is looking into the circumstances leading up to the Second Permanent Secretary's resignation.In that exceptional context, I believe it is appropriate to confirm to the Hon. Member that the former Second Permanent Secretary neither advised on, nor participated in, negotiations on the Windsor Framework.

Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities

Infrastructure Levy

Matthew Pennycook: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, when he plans to publish research commissioned by his Department from the University of Liverpool on the implications of the new infrastructure levy as provided for by the Levelling-up and Regeneration Bill.

Rachel Maclean: The Department is intending to publish a consultation on the detailed operation of the Infrastructure Levy shortly. This will be accompanied by the University of Liverpool research report.

Freeports

Mr Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, with reference to the Answer of 23 March 2021 to Question 171526, on Freeports, if he will publish the locations of proposed Freeports by each (a) region and (b) nation of the UK as of 7 March 2023.

Dehenna Davison: Details about Freeport locations can be found on gov.uk. Maps showing English Freeport outer boundaries, tax, and customs sites are also publicly available.  Maps for those Green Freeports in Scotland (and any future Freeport in Wales) will be published once tax, and customs sites have been approved and designated.

Levelling Up Fund

Alex Norris: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, with reference to the oral evidence given to the Select Committee on Levelling Up, Housing and Communities by the Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Levelling up on 23 January 2023, HC744,  Q197, whether the £65 million capability and capacity funding is specific to the Levelling Up Fund.

Dehenna Davison: The department is making up to £65 million of support available to successful applicants to the Levelling Up Fund in the form of commercial advisors, grants to buy in local support, and a training package.Given the value in coordinating this support package alongside the support needs of other capital programmes, this funding can be used to support delivery of the Towns Fund and Future High Streets Fund projects, along with the core funding for Levelling Up Fund bids.

Elections: Proof of Identity

Angela Rayner: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, pursuant to the Answer of 21 February 2023 to Question 149495 on Elections: Proof of Identity, when he plans to publish information on expenditure on Voter Authority Certificates.

Dehenna Davison: Information on expenditure will be set out in the usual way.

Elections: Proof of Identity

Alex Norris: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of providing funding to local authorities for the creation of sight loss registers to provide blind and partially sighted people with information on (a) new voter ID requirements and (b) other election events.

Dehenna Davison: Further to the answers given to Questions UIN 119056 and 121031 on the 16 and 20 January 2023, the Government has also provided £4.75m for communications related to voter identification to local authorities with polls this year.

Social Rented Housing: Standards

Rachael Maskell: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, whether he is planning to introduce legislation to help tackle the provision of poor quality social housing.

Rachael Maskell: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what assessment he has made of the quality of housing services provided by local authorities.

Dehenna Davison: I refer the Hon. Member to my answer to Question UIN 147041 on 27 February 2023.

Buildings: Fire Prevention

Matthew Pennycook: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, whether he plans to publish the names of developers who sign the developer remediation contract by the deadline of 13 March 2023.

Lee Rowley: The Government has made it clear that it expects major developers to sign the developer remediation contract by 13 March and that if they do not sign the contract, they can expect this fact to become publicly known.

Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole Council

Sir Christopher Chope: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, pursuant to the Answer of 1 March 2023 to Question 152185 on Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole Council, what the planned timetable is for the (a) commencement and (b) conclusion of the governance and finance review; and how it will be publicised.

Lee Rowley: The independent assurance review of Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole council (BCP) is in the process of being set up and we will be announcing further information shortly. We anticipate the review will have both started and concluded over the course of the Spring.

Homes England

Matthew Pennycook: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, when Homes England’s next strategic plan will be published.

Rachel Maclean: Announcements will be made in the usual way.

Leasehold: Reform

Duncan Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, whether he plans to implement the recommendations of the report by the Law Commission entitled Leasehold home ownership: buying your freehold or extending your lease, published on 21 July 2020; and whether he plans to review the calculation relating to the lease extension premium

Rachel Maclean: The Government has committed to making enfranchisement cheaper for leaseholders by reforming the process of valuation they must follow to calculate the cost of extending their lease or buying their freehold. We will abolish marriage value, cap ground rents in the calculation, prescribe the rates to be used and introduce an online calculator.On 11 January 2022, the Government launched a consultation on a number of recommendations made by the Law Commission aimed at broadening the rights of leaseholders, and reinvigorating commonhold.The consultation closed on 22 February 2022 and we received over 2000 responses. We are currently analysing the feedback and we will provide a response in due course.

Private Rented Housing: Regulation

Dr Rupa Huq: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, if the Government will bring forward legislative proposals to implement a (a) rent freeze and (b) eviction ban.

Rachel Maclean: The Government has no plans to bring forward a rent freeze or a comprehensive eviction ban. As set out previously, we will deliver our manifesto commitment to abolish section 21 no fault evictions and a fairer deal for private renters.

Park Homes: Sales

Justin Madders: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, with reference to his Department's research entitled the impact of a change in the maximum park home sale commission, published June 2022, what assessment he has made of the implications for his Department’s policies of that report's findings.

Rachel Maclean: We will consider the report in more detail and publish our response in due course.

Treasury

Delivery Services: Self-employed

Sir Greg Knight: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what estimate he has made of the number of delivery drivers operating in the UK who are not registered as being self-employed and who are evading paying income tax; what steps he is taking to address that issue; and if he will make a statement.

Victoria Atkins: The Government is committed in tackling non-compliance across all areas of the economy and tax system, including those who fail to register for and pay the taxes they owe. It continues to support HMRC with the resources and technology it needs to transform the way it approaches and tackles non-compliance. HMRC proactively obtains a range of third-party data to identify undeclared sources of income including online intermediaries and card payment providers, and carries out a range of compliance interventions as a result. Some delivery drivers will be employees and will be registered with HMRC under Pay As You Earn (PAYE) system.

Television: Tax Allowances

Dame Caroline Dinenage: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment his Department has made of potential impact of the high-end television tax relief on (a) levels of drama and comedy production, (b) the UK's creative economy and (c) jobs and talent development.

Victoria Atkins: The Government recognises the value of the UK’s world leading creative industries and the creative industries tax reliefs help ensure that these sectors remain world-class, projecting our values and influence around the world. The objective of high-end TV tax relief is to support and incentivise the production of culturally British content. In the year ending March 2022, £397 million of high-end TV tax relief was paid in response to 370 claims, representing 355 programmes. In November 2022, an evaluation of the film and TV tax reliefs was published. The evaluation can be accessed here: Creative Industry Tax Reliefs Evaluation - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)

Post Offices: ICT

Ben Lake: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will make it his policy to exempt compensation payments issued by the Post Office Historical Shortfall Scheme from income tax.

Victoria Atkins: The Government wants to see all victims affected by the Post Office Horizon IT scandal compensated fairly and swiftly. We will continue to work across Government and with the Post Office to ensure the postmasters get the full compensation they deserve and that payments and associated taxes are fair and proportionate.

Hospitality Industry: VAT

Ben Lake: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he make an estimate of the cost to the Exchequer of reducing the rate of VAT levied on hospitality businesses to 10 per cent.

Victoria Atkins: The Government introduced a temporary reduced rate of VAT for hospitality on 15 July 2020 to support the cash flow and viability of the sector which was severely affected by COVID-19. The relief, which ended on 31 March 2022, cost over £8 billion. The annual cost of a reduced rate of VAT would be greater now that activity in the sector has recovered. It was appropriate that as restrictions were lifted and demand for goods and services in these sectors increased, the temporary VAT relief was first reduced and then removed in order to rebuild and strengthen the public finances. In response to more recent pressures on businesses, the Government has since announced a new energy support scheme for business, the Energy Bills Discount Scheme, as well as the further business rates reliefs mentioned in my answer to the Honourable Member’s previous question UIN 147209 on 27th February. The Government keep all taxes under review.

Business Rates: Valuation

Tim Farron: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether the business rates revaluation increased business rates for shops that had a rateable value of (a) above and (b) below £51,000.

Victoria Atkins: The 2023 business rates revaluation will update ratable values to ensure bills more closely reflect the commercial property market and means the burden of rates is fairly redistributed across all non-domestic properties. Total business rates paid by the retail sector is estimated to fall by 20 per cent as a result of the revaluation. At Autumn Statement 2022, the Government announced a package of changes and tax cuts worth £13.6 billion to ratepayers over the next five years. The package contains new measures to reduce the burden of business rates, including a freeze in the multiplier, extended relief for high street businesses, an exchequer funded transitional relief scheme, and targeted support for small businesses.

North Sea Oil: Shetland

Dan Carden: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will make an estimate of the potential change in tax revenues arising from the Energy Profits Levy investment allowance for the development the Rosebank oil field.

James Cartlidge: The Office for Budget Responsibility’s (OBR) forecast of tax revenues from Energy Profits Levy was presented at Autumn Statement 2022. An update will be published alongside Spring Budget 2023 on Wednesday, 15 March. The forecast takes into account the effect of the investment allowance but does not give a breakdown by field or company to protect taxpayer confidentiality.

Gift Aid

Damian Green: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether his Department is taking steps to help increase the uptake of Gift Aid.

James Cartlidge: The Government is committed to providing support to the charitable sector worth over £5 billion per year. Gift Aid - a significant part of this- is worth £1.4 billion per year to charities and £500 million to their donors (through higher rate relief). Charities have a key role to play in raising uptake as they really are uniquely placed to persuade eligible donors to use Gift Aid, as well as educate them about the benefits of doing so at the actual point of donation. HMRC works closely and regularly with representatives from across the charity sector reviewing Gift Aid, as well as raising awareness amongst donors. It places a high priority on this collaborative work, and is always interested in ideas to improve the take-up and raise awareness of Gift Aid.

State Retirement Pensions: National Insurance Contributions

Drew Hendry: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether he has had recent discussions with HMRC on the potential merits of extending the deadline for retrospective payment of National Insurance contributions necessary to access the full entitlement of state pension benefits.

Victoria Atkins: On 7 March 2023, the Government issued a Written Ministerial Statement (WMS) announcing that the Voluntary Class 2 and 3 National Insurance contributions (NICs) deadline will be extended from 5 April 2023 to 31 July 2023 for this year only. This will provide individuals more time to fill gaps in their National Insurance record, which could help them increase the amount they receive in State Pension. A link to the WMS can be found at https://questions-statements.parliament.uk/written-statements/detail/2023-03-07/hcws608.

Revenue and Customs: Telephone Services

Sarah Olney: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many calls were received by the HMRC income tax helpline in each of the last three years.

Sarah Olney: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many staff worked on the HMRC Income Tax helpline in each of the last three years.

Sarah Olney: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, how long the average wait time was for callers to the HMRC Income Tax helpline in each of the last three years.

Victoria Atkins: The Income Tax Helpline is administered by the HMRC Personal Tax (PT) Operations unit. HMRC quarterly performance reports on GOV.UK includes information on handled by the PT Operation helpdesk dating back three years. These can be accessed on the GOV.UK website here: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/hmrc-monthly-performance-reports#reporting-year-2022-to-2023.

Tax Avoidance

Daisy Cooper: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to the Answer of 2 March to Question 157046 on Tax Avoidance and the Answer of 1 March to Question 152309, how many individuals are subject to open compliance checks relating to disguised remuneration schemes used before 9 December 2010.

Daisy Cooper: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to the Answer of 7 March to Question 157046 on Tax Avoidance, how many of those taxpayers have been contacted by HMRC about those checks in the last (a) 12 weeks and (b) 12 months.

Victoria Atkins: HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) currently has around 15,000 open compliance checks relating to a number of individual taxpayers who used Disguised Remuneration (DR) tax avoidance schemes before 9 December 2010, and which are not subject to the Loan Charge following recommendations made by the Independent Loan Charge Review. These compliance checks will include both open enquiries and assessments, and taxpayers can be subject to more than one compliance check at one time. As part of its overall compliance processes and its commitment to update taxpayers at least annually, all of these taxpayers should have received correspondence from HM Revenue & Customs in the last 12 months.

Fuels: Excise Duties

Sarah Olney: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will provide a breakdown of Fuel Duty collected in each quarter of the last five years.

James Cartlidge: During each of the quarters for the previous five calendar years, the amounts of revenue (receipts) that have been received by HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) from Fuel Duty (also referred to as hydrocarbon oils) can be found here.

Alternative Fuel Payments: Expenditure

Ben Lake: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what estimate he has made of the total expected cost to the public purse of the (a) Alternative Fuel Payment scheme, (b) Alternative Fuel Payment Alternative Fund and (c) non-domestic Alternative Fuel Payment scheme.

James Cartlidge: The government provided £639m of funding at the 2022/23 Supplementary Estimates for the Alternative Fuel Payment scheme. This included funding for the Alternative Fund. The government provided £93.75m of funding at the 2022/23 Supplementary Estimates for the Alternative Fuel Payment scheme for non-domestic users.

Lloyds Bank: Closures

Jim Shannon: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment he has made of the implications for his Department's policies of Lloyds Bank closures in 2023.

Andrew Griffith: The Government believes that all customers, wherever they live, should have appropriate access to banking services. Nonetheless, decisions on opening and closing branches are a commercial issue for banks and building societies. The Government does not intervene in these decisions or make direct assessments of these branch networks. Guidance from the Financial Conduct Authority sets out its expectation of firms when they are deciding to close their branches. Firms are expected to carefully consider the impact of planned branch closures on the everyday banking and cash access needs of their customers and consider possible alternative access arrangements. This ensures that the implementation of closure decisions is undertaken in a way that treats customers fairly. Alternative options for access can be via telephone banking, through digital means such as mobile or online banking, and the Post Office. The Post Office Banking Framework allows 99% of personal banking and 95% of business banking customers to deposit cheques, check their balance and withdraw and deposit cash at 11,500 Post Office branches in the UK. New shared banking hubs are also being piloted, providing basic banking services and dedicated space where community bankers from major banks can meet customers of that bank.

Mortgages: Legal Opinion

Marsha De Cordova: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether he has had discussions with banks on permitting people who apply for fixed mortgage deals to choose a legal service provider of their own choosing.

Marsha De Cordova: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether his Department is taking steps to help ensure that banks which require customers to use a specific legal service provider when applying for fixed mortgage deals are liable when those legal services cannot be delivered within reasonable timescales.

Marsha De Cordova: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether his Department is taking steps to help ensure that customers who lose money as a result of unreasonable delays in the provision of legal services are compensated when the use of a specific legal service provider was stipulated by the bank to which they are applying for a fixed mortgage.

Andrew Griffith: Complaints about the service provided by authorised legal services professionals are handled independently by the Legal Ombudsman. The Legal Ombudsman in resolving a complaint may require the payment of compensation to the complainant where it is deemed appropriate based on the facts of the case. More broadly, the Government is regularly in contact with mortgage lenders on all aspects of their business. However, it would not be appropriate for the Government to comment on, or intervene in, commercial decisions – including decisions around conveyancing – made by mortgage lenders. The UK benefits from a competitive mortgage market, and those seeking a mortgage provider that allows borrowers to choose their own legal service provider are encouraged to shop around to find a lender that meets their needs.

Debts: Advisory Services

Emma Hardy: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will make an assessment of the potential impact of the budget allocation for the Money and Pensions Service for community-based debt advice in the period between 2023 and 2025 on the number of compulsory redundancies of advisors; and whether he has had recent discussions with (a) the Citizen's Advice Bureau and (b) other providers on this issue.

Andrew Griffith: The Money and Pensions Service (MaPS) recently extended grants for community-based debt advice for 26 months starting from 1 February, as part of a £76 million total package for debt advice services in England this year. The package includes three-year contracts to provide national and business debt advice and administration of debt relief orders and is expected to increase the volume of debt advice sessions. As part of the transition phase of implementing the new grant arrangements and contracts, MaPS are in regular discussions with their funded providers, which includes discussions about resourcing arrangements. The Government continues to work closely with MaPS to monitor the transition to these new arrangements.

Whisky: Scotland

Martin Docherty-Hughes: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will make an assessment with Cabinet colleagues of the impact of scotch whisky distilleries on (a) the local economy and (b) communities in Scotland.

Martin Docherty-Hughes: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment he has made of the implications for his policies of the Scotch Whisky industry’s investment in the UK economy in the last five years.

Martin Docherty-Hughes: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of changes in alcohol duty rates from 1 August 2023 on inflation.

James Cartlidge: The Government is unable to speculate on the content of the Spring Budget, which takes place on 15 March. When setting alcohol duty rates through the usual Budget process, the Government aims to balance the impact on businesses with its public health objectives, and to ensure that the public finances are on a sustainable footing. Any impacts from changes to the duty rates made at the Spring Budget 2023 will be set out in the Tax Information and Impact Notes published following the Budget. The spirits industry, including Scotch Whisky, has benefitted from spirits duty being cut or frozen for nine out of the last ten fiscal events. Spirits duty is now at its lowest level in real terms since 1918. In addition to this, on 19 December the Government extended the current alcohol duty freeze by six months to align with the implementation of the alcohol duty reforms and reduce the impact of the duty changes on businesses.

Fuels: Excise Duties

Sarah Olney: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will provide a regional breakdown of Fuel Duty collected in each of the last five years.

James Cartlidge: The information is not available and to do so would add an unnecessary burden to the taxpayer.

Energy: Prices

Stephen Farry: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether he has made a recent assessment of the potential merits of revising the planned dates for ending energy support for (a) residential and (b) business customers.

James Cartlidge: On 9 January, the government announced that it would be launching a new energy support scheme for businesses, charities and the public sector. The new Energy Bills Discount Scheme will provide all eligible businesses and other non-domestic energy users across the UK with a discount on high energy bills until 31 March 2024, following the end of the current Energy Bill Relief Scheme. It will also provide businesses in sectors with particularly high levels of energy use and trade intensity with a higher level of support. The new scheme strikes a balance between supporting businesses for a further 12 months, from April 2023 to March 2024, and limiting taxpayer’s exposure to volatile energy markets. This provides long term certainty for businesses and reflects how the scale of the challenge has changed since September last year. We will continue to monitor energy prices in the coming months. For households, the Energy Price Guarantee scheme protects customers from increases in energy costs by limiting the amount suppliers can charge per unit of energy used. It currently brings a typical household energy bill in Great Britain down to £2,500 per year, with equivalent support provided in Northern Ireland. The Energy Price Guarantee will remain in place until 31 March 2024. The government will also develop a new approach to consumer protection in domestic energy markets, which will apply from April 2024 onwards. It will work with consumer groups and industry to consider the best approach, including options such as social tariffs, as part of wider retail market reforms. The objectives of this new approach will be to deliver a fair deal for domestic consumers, ensure the energy market is resilient and investable over the long-term, and support an efficient and flexible energy system.

Energy: Prices

Claire Hanna: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of taking steps to ensure that vulnerable households receive long-term support for energy bills in the context of his upcoming Spring Budget.

James Cartlidge: We do not comment on the Budget process ahead of fiscal events. The government will support the most vulnerable with targeted support throughout the next year, via the substantial package of cost of living support announced at the Autumn Statement. This includes £300 cost of living payments for over eight million pensioners households, £150 for over 6 million individuals on disability benefits and £900 for over eight million households on means-tested benefits. The government also announced an additional £1bn will be provided help with the cost of household essentials, bringing total funding for this support to £2.5 billion. In England this includes an extension to the Household Support Fund in 2023/24, with the devolved administrations receiving funding through the Barnett formula. We have also uplifted benefits and the state pension in line with inflation and increased the National Living Wage.

Childcare: Government Assistance

Claire Hanna: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of removing or raising the maximum monthly limit for childcare support through Universal Credit and Tax-Free Childcare in the context of his upcoming Spring Budget.

John Glen: The maximum monthly limit for childcare support through Universal Credit and the similar offer in Tax-Free Childcare is in place to provide fairness in the welfare system between those receiving out of work benefits and those in work.It is therefore right that there should be a reasonable cap on the childcare costs that a household can have reimbursed through Universal Credit in each of their monthly assessment period, as well as in Tax-Free Childcare.As with all tax and welfare policy, we keep these amounts under constant review.

Development Aid

Ms Lyn Brown: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether he has had recent discussions with the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, on reallocating more of the UK’s SDRs for development objectives.

Andrew Griffith: The Chancellor of the Exchequer and the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs work together closely on foreign policy and development finance objectives.On SDR channelling specifically, I refer the Hon. Member to the answer given on 6 March to Question 153706 to the Hon. Member for Birmingham, Hodge Hill (Mr. Byrne).

Department for Business and Trade

Imports: Israel

Ben Lake: To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, with reference to the next round of negotiations on the UK-Israel Free Trade Agreement, what steps she plans to take to help ensure that goods imported from illegal settlements will not be entitled to the benefits of trade preferences.

Nigel Huddleston: Department for Business and Trade indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Business

Bill Esterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, with reference to the EU's Green Deal Industrial Plan announced on 1 February 2023, what discussions she has had with EU officials on the potential impact of that Plan on UK businesses; and whether the Government plans to bring forward specific policy proposals in response to that Plan.

Ms Nusrat Ghani: Department for Business and Trade indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Department for Business and Trade: Consultants

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what the cost to the public purse was of spending on external consultants by (a) UK Export Finance, (b) the Trade Remedies Authority, (c) UK Defence and Security Exports and (d) the Competition and Markets Authority in (i) 2020, (ii) 2021 and (iii) 2022; and whether any of that spending related to the preparation of funding bids to (A) her predecessor Departments and (B) HM Treasury.

Nigel Huddleston: UK Export Finance (UKEF) expenditure on consultants is published in the Annual Report and Accounts at the following location (https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/uk-export-finance-annual-reports-and-accounts). Of this expenditure, £679,629 related to the preparation of funding bids to HM Treasury. The Trade Remedies Authority has not incurred any consultancy expenditure since its creation on 01 June 2021.  The former Department for International Trade (DIT) expenditure on consultants is published in the Annual Report and Accounts at the following location (https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/department-for-international-trade-annual-report-and-accounts). None of this expenditure related to the preparation of funding bids. The Competition and Markets Authority expenditure on consultants is published in Annual Report and Accounts at the following location (https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/cma-annual-report-and-accounts-2020-to-2021). None of this expenditure related to the preparation of funding bids.

Consumers: Ombudsman

Drew Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of introducing a consumer rights and support service ombudsmen.

Kevin Hollinrake: Government published its response to the 2021 ‘Reforming Competition and Consumer Policy’ consultation in Spring 2022. This set out Government’s intention to continue to consider ways in which consumers can be supported in finding routes to redress, working with Citizens Advice, enforcers and Alternative Dispute Resolution providers to achieve this. Consumers should report problems to the Government funded Citizens Advice consumer service on 0808 223 1133, www.citizensadvice.org/. The helpline offers free advice to consumers on their rights and how to take their complaints forward. The service can also refer on complaints to Trading Standards for further appropriate enforcement action.

Minerals: Recycling

Julian Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, whether her Department has provided recent funding for research into the recycling of rare earth elements.

Ms Nusrat Ghani: The Government is deploying public R&D funding to promote recycling, reuse, resource efficiency and substitution of critical minerals (including rare earth elements), for example via the £30 million National Interdisciplinary Circular Economy Research (NICER) Programme. Last month, UK Research and Innovation launched the Circular Critical Materials Supply Chains (CLIMATES) fund, with an initial £15 million to focus on making the UK’s rare earth element supply chains more resilient and boosting the circular economy. This will support innovations in supply chains and recycling, as well as engagement with international partners and support for future skills.

Department for Business and Trade: Procurement

Angela Rayner: To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, how many suppliers her Department excluded from procurement on the grounds of (a) fraud, (b) corruption and (c)  other grounds under the Public Contract Regulations 2015 from 2015 to 2022.

Kevin Hollinrake: In response we confirm that the Department for Business and Trade has not excluded suppliers from procurement on the grounds of either a) fraud or b) corruption.In response to c) other grounds under the Public Contract Regulations 2015, some suppliers have been excluded for technical reasons but we do not hold a central record of these so are unable to confirm the quantity.

Energy: Investment

Bill Esterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, pursuant to the Answer of 6 March 2023 to Question 156125, what discussions she has had with her counterpart in the US administration; and what proposals were made as a result of the discussions to (a) protect UK businesses and (b) introduce a similar policy in the UK in response.

Bill Esterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, pursuant to the Answer of 6 March 2023 to Question 156125, whether her Department has made an assessment of the potential impact of the US Inflation Reduction Act on UK businesses.

Nigel Huddleston: We are working together with the US to develop meaningful solutions that support our supply chains and we will continue to robustly defend the interests of UK industry.We continue to assess the impact of international policies on UK investment to ensure that we meet our net-zero and economic growth ambitions. The UK has made significant progress in decarbonising and growing our economy, and we will continue to back our ambitious targets with impactful domestic policy and targeted funding.We are still working to understand the impact of the Inflation Reduction Act. We are committed to working with international partners to achieve our common goals for Net Zero in a way that does not undermine our commitments to rules-based trade.

Electric Vehicles: Manufacturing Industries

Bill Esterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what information her Department holds on the number of electric vehicle manufacturing companies operating in the UK which have an ultimate owner based in (a) the UK and (b) China.

Ms Nusrat Ghani: As one of the best places for automotive manufacturing many of the world's leading companies manufacture or carry out R&D in the UK. This includes Lotus who make electric hypercars at their Hethel plant in Norfolk, and the London Electric Vehicle Company who produce Plug-In Hybrid Electric Vehicles in Coventry. Both are owned by China's Zhejiang Geely Holding Group. UK owned Wrightbus produce electric buses at their Ballymena plant in Northern Ireland.

Electric Vehicles: Batteries

Bill Esterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, pursuant to the Answer of 6 March 2023 to Question 155105, what level of battery production in GWh will the gigafactory in Sunderland produce per year.

Ms Nusrat Ghani: Government support via the Automotive Transformation Fund (ATF) helped secure major investments in the UK, including the £1 billion electric vehicle hub in Sunderland in partnership between Nissan and Envision AESC. Envision AESC has stated the facility will have a capacity of 12GWh. Actual production capacity will be a matter for the company.

Small Businesses: Finance

Mr Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, with reference to page 65 of the Autumn Budget and Spending Review 2021, how much and what proportion of the £1.6 billion for the British Business Bank’s regional funds has been allocated to each of the qualifying regions as of 8 March 2023.

Kevin Hollinrake: The Nations and Regions Investment Funds were announced at the 2021 Spending Review and will be delivered by the British Business Bank. The Funds will deliver a mix of debt and equity finance to businesses in their area. The allocations are: £600m for a new Northern Powerhouse Investment Fund;£400m for a new Midlands Engine Investment Fund;£200m for a South West Investment Fund;£150m for a Scotland Investment Fund;£130m for a Wales Investment Fund; and£70m for a Northern Ireland Investment Fund.

Tradeshow Access Programme

Dame Nia Griffith: To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, how many applications to the Trade Access Programme over the past twelve months have been (a) received and (b) successful.

Dame Nia Griffith: To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what the average timescale is for the approval of an application to the Trade Access Programme.

Nigel Huddleston: The Tradeshow Access Programme ceased operation on 31 March 2021.

Department of Health and Social Care

Members: Correspondence

Andrew Gwynne: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, when his Department plans to respond to the letter of 10 January 2023 from the hon. Member for Denton and Reddish.

Will Quince: The Department of Health and Social Care has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

NHS: Expenditure

Wes Streeting: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to the Answer of 12 October 2021 to Question 51702 on NHS: Expenditure, how much NHS England and clinical commissioning groups have spent in aggregate on (a) mental health services, (b) acute health services, (c) social care services, (d) primary care services and (e) other main areas of spending in each financial year since 2015-16; and how much (i) NHS England, (ii) CCGs and (iii) integrated care boards plan to spend in aggregate in each of those areas in 2022-23.

Maria Caulfield: The Department of Health and Social Care has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder and Autism: Stockport

Navendu Mishra: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to increase provision of mental health services for children with (a) autism and (b) attention deficit hyperactivity disorder in Stockport constituency.

Maria Caulfield: The Department of Health and Social Care has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Brian House Children's Hospice: Finance

Cat Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will make an assessment of the adequacy of the level of Government support for Brian House Children's Hospice.

Helen Whately: The Department of Health and Social Care has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Smoking

Andrew Gwynne: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent progress the Government has made on achieving its objective of England to be smokefree by 2030.

Neil O'Brien: The Department of Health and Social Care has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Hospitals: Construction

Rob Roberts: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to the Government's commitment to build 40 new hospitals, where those hospitals will be located.

Will Quince: The Department of Health and Social Care has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

NHS: Data Protection

Helen Morgan: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that NHS subject access requests are accessible to people without photographic identification.

Will Quince: The Department of Health and Social Care has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Hospitals: Construction

Daisy Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what the estimated cost of the New Hospital Programme was in (a) 2020, (b) 2021, (c) 2022 and (d) 2023 to date.

Will Quince: The Department of Health and Social Care has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Hospitals: Construction

Daisy Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how much has been spent on the New Hospital Programme in (a) 2020, (b) 2021, (c) 2022 and (d) 2023 to date.

Will Quince: The Department of Health and Social Care has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Brain: Tumours

Lisa Nandy: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department is taking steps to ensure that brain tissue (a) collection and (b) storage infrastructure is adequate to support research into brain tumours.

Helen Whately: The Department of Health and Social Care has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Brain: Tumours

Lisa Nandy: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will take steps to ensure that NHS funding for research into childhood brain tumour is ring-fenced.

Helen Whately: The Department of Health and Social Care has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Medical Equipment: Shortages

Mr Virendra Sharma: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to the British Healthcare Trades Association's survey entitled The impact of the current economic landscape on UK health and social care, what assessment he has made of the implications for his policies of the finding that 41 per cent of medical device manufacturers are considering reducing the amount of stock they produce and distribute as a result of financial and regulatory pressures.

Will Quince: The Department of Health and Social Care has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Department of Health and Social Care: Written Questions

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, when he plans to answer Question 148573, tabled by the hon. Member for Islington South and Finsbury on 20 February 2022.

Will Quince: The Department of Health and Social Care has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

NHS Trusts: Databases

Mr David Davis: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how much money from the public purse has been spent on the faster data flows pilots of Palantir Foundry to date; and if he will provide a breakdown of (a) spending on individual trusts’ implementation costs and (b) payments made to (i) Palantir and (ii) consultants.

Will Quince: The Department of Health and Social Care has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

NHS Trusts: Databases

Mr David Davis: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will publish his Department's internal assessments of the performance of the pilots of Palantir Foundry at (a) Chelsea and Westminster, (b) the Royal Free London, (c) Barts Health and (d) Milton Keynes University Hospital NHS Trusts.

Will Quince: The Department of Health and Social Care has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

NHS Trusts: Databases

Mr David Davis: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, which NHS trusts have paused or suspended pilots of Palantir Foundry.

Will Quince: The Department of Health and Social Care has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Health Services: Ventilation

Geraint Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care,  if he will apply the latest 2022 update to The Building Regulations on Ventilation for New Buildings to existing Healthcare Buildings.

Will Quince: The Department of Health and Social Care has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Suicide

Wendy Morton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he plans to provide targeted funding to support local area services for suicide prevention work beyond 2023.

Maria Caulfield: Whilst funding beyond 2024/25 is subject to future Spending Reviews, we will consider further opportunities to build upon the £57 million we are investing into suicide prevention from 2019/20 to 2023/24 through the NHS Long Term Plan. Through this funding, all areas of the country are seeing investment to support local suicide prevention plans and the development of suicide bereavement services.

Dermatology: Health Services

Feryal Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to the report by NHS England entitled Delivery plan for tackling the COVID-19 backlog of elective care, published on 8 February 2022, what recent steps his Department has taken to (a) increase capacity and (b) reduce treatment backlogs in dermatology services.

Will Quince: The Government plans to spend more than £8 billion from 2022/23 to 2024/25 to increase capacity and reduce treatment backlogs in England across specialisms, including dermatology. This is supported further by £5.9 billion investment for new beds, equipment and technology.The National Health Service is rolling out a network of up to 160 Community Diagnostic Centres (CDCs) to deliver up to 17 million tests, checks and scans by March 2025, including in dermatology services. Currently 93 CDCs are operational, and have delivered over 3.2 million tests, checks, and scans since July 2021.

Medical Equipment: Procurement

Mr Virendra Sharma: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to maintain the supply of medical devices in the UK in light of increased financial and regulatory pressures for manufacturers.

Will Quince: The Government recognises challenges faced by suppliers relating to financial pressures and regulatory changes. The Department and NHS Supply Chain (NHSSC) have robust measures in place to monitor supply chains, working closely with suppliers within the bounds of contractual agreements to secure value for money for taxpayers and maintain access to devices and clinical consumables. Similarly, the Government remains committed to providing sufficient time for industry to transition to any new regulatory requirements, following its response to the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency’s future medical device regulations consultation in June 2022. The latter outlined changes supporting innovation in the United Kingdom’s life sciences and access to medical devices.

Electronic Cigarettes: Nicotine

Rachael Maskell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will reduce the nicotine levels allowed in vaping devices.

Neil O'Brien: There are no current plans to reduce nicotine levels beyond those set out in the Tobacco and Related Products Regulations 2016.

Electronic Cigarettes: Children

Dr Matthew Offord: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will take steps to convene a round table of companies manufacturing disposable vaping devices on steps to ensure those products are not marketed or used by children.

Neil O'Brien: There are no current plans to convene a round table of companies manufacturing disposable vaping devices. However, alongside the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency, my officials regularly meet with the Independent British Vape Trade Association and their members to ensure these products are not marketed or used by children.

Electronic Cigarettes: Children and Young People

Rachael Maskell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will publish a strategy to tackle the rise in young people vaping.

Neil O'Brien: There are no current plans to publish a strategy on youth vaping, but the Government will keep this under review.We have a range of measures in place to prevent vapes being used by young people. The law restricts sales to over 18 years of age only, limits nicotine content, refill bottle and tank sizes, and has specific requirements on labelling and through advertising restrictions. In October 2022, we published new content on the potential risks of vaping on the Talk to Frank and Better Health websites and we have also developed a suite of resources for schools to use on vaping

Breast Cancer: Ashfield

Lee Anderson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to increase the uptake of breast screenings in Ashfield and Eastwood constituency.

Neil O'Brien: Steps being taken to increase the uptake of breast screenings in Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust and Sherwood Forest Hospitals Foundation Trust include: · Implementation of SMS text messages reminders;· Systems to telephone patients directly to offer appointments;· Women with learning disabilities are offered extended appointments, supportive pre-visits, an easy read breast screening leaflet and are able to attend with a friend, family member or carer;· Provision of translation services;· Work to establish a health inequalities breast screening register; and· Allocation of £827,200 capital funding to Nottingham University Hospitals to boost activity and uptake of breast screening. However, data is not collected by constituency. Patients in Ashfield are usually invited for screening by the Sherwood Forest Hospitals Breast Screening Programme and patients in EastWood are usually invited for screening by the Nottingham University Hospitals Breast Screening Programme.

Hospitals: Infectious Diseases

Geraint Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he has made an assessment of the implications for his policies of the findings in the article by Guest, J. et.al entitled Modelling the annual NHS costs and outcomes attributable to healthcare-associated infections in England, published in the British medical journal on 22 January 2020, on (a) the cost to the NHS, (b) the number of patient deaths, (c) the number of occupied hospital bed days and (d) days of absenteeism by health and care professionals due to hospital-acquired infections.

Maria Caulfield: The Government is aware of the findings in the article by Guest, J. et al. 'Modelling the annual NHS costs and outcomes attributable to healthcare-associated infections in England'. Estimates of the cost to the National Health Service, the number of patient deaths, the number of occupied hospital bed days and days of absenteeism by health and care professionals due to healthcare-associated infections are welcome and inform the Government’s assessment of the cost-effectiveness of policy options. The UK Health Security Agency monitors the numbers of certain infections that occur in healthcare settings through routine surveillance programmes and advises on how to prevent and control infection in establishments such as hospitals, care homes and schools.

Patients: Wearable Technology

Rachael Maskell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will have discussions with digital tech companies on the potential for (a) developing and (b) using digital wearable devices and apps for improving mental health.

Maria Caulfield: Both the Department and NHS England have regular conversations with tech companies with regards to the potential for developing and using digital tools for improving mental health, including wearable devices and apps. The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) Early Value Assessments are specifically looking at promising technologies, with a focus on mental health within pilot topics. Guidance has been released for guided digital Cognitive Behavioural Therapy tools for children and young people with symptoms of low mood and anxiety and NICE have recently launched a consultation on guidance for digital technologies to support adults with depression or anxiety.

Vaccine Damage Payment Scheme

Sir Christopher Chope: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 1 March to Question 152186 on Vaccine Damage Payment Scheme, how many of the 849 medical rejections were due to (a) lack of causation and (b) failure to meet the 60 per cent disability threshold.

Maria Caulfield: As of 23 February 2023, of the 849 rejected claims to the Vaccine Damage Payment Scheme relating to COVID-19 vaccines, 800 claims were rejected where causation due to the vaccine was not accepted and 49 claims were rejected where they did not meet the 60% disability threshold.

Suicide

Wendy Morton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, when he expects to publish the new National Suicide Prevention Strategy.

Maria Caulfield: We have committed to publish a new national suicide prevention strategy this year and are engaging widely across the suicide prevention sector to understand what further action we can take to reduce suicides amongst different groups.

Mental Health Services: Parents

David Warburton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to help support parents of children with severe mental health conditions.

Maria Caulfield: We would expect that children and young people’s mental health services would routinely involve parents, carers and families in the care of children and young people with severe mental health conditions as appropriate. The Mental Health Act code of practice states that mental health providers should make efforts to support parents of children who are detained under the Mental Health Act 1983. Our planned reforms to the Mental Health Act will help better ensure that parents are more closely involved in care planning and treatment decisions if their child is detained under the Mental Health Act, with the aim that this facilitates more trusting relationships with the clinical teams and better outcomes for the child. Additionally, NHS England provides a MindEd portal which has specific content directed at parents, which is available at the following link: https://www.mindedforfamilies.org.uk/ NHS England has published information for parents and carers of children in contact with children and young people’s mental health services, available at the following link: www.nhs.uk/nhs-services/mental-health-services/mental-health-services-for-young-people/children-young-people-mental-health-services-cypmhs-parents-carers-information The webpage contains information about where to seek advice and support for coping with anything affecting the child’s mental health or wellbeing. It also includes a link to the Royal College of Psychiatrists’ (RCPsych) advice leaflets for parents and carers about a wide range of mental health conditions, including schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, and eating disorders. RCPsych’s advice can be found at the following link: www.rcpsych.ac.uk/mental-health/parents-and-young-people. YoungMinds and other mental health charities have produced extensive resources and support for parents.

Mental Health Services: Finance

Dr Rosena Allin-Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether the Major Conditions Strategy will detail levels of funding for mental health services.

Dr Rosena Allin-Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, when he plans to announce the structure of the Major Conditions Strategy.

Maria Caulfield: The Major Conditions Strategy will ensure that mental ill-health is considered alongside other physical health conditions, meaning the interactions between them are reflected in any resulting commitments. We are already investing at least £2.3 billion of additional funding a year by 2023/24 to expand and transform mental health services in England so that two million more people will be able to get the NHS-funded mental health support they need.

Electronic Cigarettes: Asthma

Daisy Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will make an assessment of the potential impact of e-cigarette smoke on people with asthma in enclosed public places.

Neil O'Brien: The Nicotine vaping in England: 2022 evidence update found that there is limited evidence that vaping negatively affects lung function among adults with asthma. In 2016, the Government published guidance to inform evidence-based policy making on vapes in public places. This included guidance that people with asthma and other respiratory conditions can be sensitive to a range of environmental irritants, which could include the vapour produced from a vape. The guidance noted that the interests of such individuals should be taken into account when developing policies and adjustments made where necessary. The best thing any smoker can do for their health is to quit smoking, and those with asthma will benefit hugely from stopping smoking.

Electronic Cigarettes: Standards

Mr Virendra Sharma: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will take steps to introduce mandated premarket testing on e-cigarette devices to prevent overfilling as part of the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency notification process.

Neil O'Brien: There are no current plans to introduce mandated premarket testing on vape devices as part of the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency notification process. Producers wishing to supply vapes on the United Kingdom market must comply with the product standards and safety requirements set out in the Tobacco and Related Products Regulations 2016.

Electronic Cigarettes: Standards

Mr Virendra Sharma: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the (a) safety and (b) quality of e-cigarettes available to consumers.

Neil O'Brien: The latest assessment on the safety and quality of vapes can be found in the Nicotine vaping in England: 2022 evidence update report, published in September 2022. The report is available at the following link:https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/nicotine-vaping-in-england-2022-evidence-updateThe report found that in the short and medium term, vaping poses a small fraction of the risks of smoking, but that vaping is not risk-free, particularly for people who have never smoked. Vapes are regulated by the Tobacco and Related Products Regulations 2016 (TRPR) requiring notification to the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency. The TRPR sets product standards on the quality of vapes by limiting the maximum nicotine strength, setting refill bottle and tank size limits, setting requirements on labelling, and also by setting restrictions on advertising which includes mainstream media, TV and radio.

Health: Wolverhampton

Andrew Gwynne: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many people have signed-up to the Better Health: Rewards app pilot in Wolverhampton, announced on 17 February 2023, as of 8 March 2023.

Neil O'Brien: As of 8 March 2023, over 15,000 people have registered with the Better Health: Rewards pilot.

Health: Wolverhampton

Andrew Gwynne: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he has made an estimate of the cost of rolling out the Better Health: Reward app pilot in Wolverhampton so that it runs nationally.

Neil O'Brien: The Better Health: Rewards pilot is set up in a way which will enable us to generate a range of strong evidence on the impact of the scheme on participants and their health behaviours. We will use the learnings from the pilot to inform the future direction of the programme.

Health: Wolverhampton

Andrew Gwynne: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how much from the public purse the Government has spent on advertising the Better Health: Reward app pilot in Wolverhampton, announced on 17 February 2023, as of 8 March 2023.

Neil O'Brien: As of 8 March 2023, the total spend on advertising for the Better Health: Rewards pilot is £80,000 excluding VAT.

Public Health: Finance

Andrew Gwynne: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, for what reason the Public Health Grant has yet to be published.

Neil O'Brien: Public Health Grant allocations require both the Department's Ministerial approval and cross-Government clearance. It will be published shortly.

Public Health: Finance

Andrew Gwynne: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to help ensure his timetable for announcing the 2023-24 Public Health Grant will not effect delivery of local public health services.

Neil O'Brien: We will announce the 2023/24 Public Health Grant allocations to local authorities in England shortly.

Smoking

Andrew Gwynne: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what estimate he has made of the cost of smoking to the UK economy.

Andrew Gwynne: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the financial cost of smoking to the NHS.

Neil O'Brien: The cost of smoking to the National Health Service is £2.4 billion each year. On the cost of smoking to the economy, we do not collect information for the United Kingdom as a whole.

Dental Services

Emma Hardy: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department is taking steps to help support integrated care boards determine how many people are unable to access an NHS dentist; and if he will make an assessment of how many people are unable to afford private treatment by integrated care board areas in England.

Neil O'Brien: The GP Patient Survey includes questions on whether patients have tried to obtain an appointment with a National Health Service dentist, and, if so, whether they had been successful. Where appropriate, the GP Patient Survey also captures the reasons why patients have not tried to obtain an appointment in the previous two years.

NHS: Software

Andrew Gwynne: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what the total cost of developing and updating the (a) Better Health Rewards, (b) NHS Weight Loss Plan, (c) NHS Active 10 Walking Tracker,  (d) NHS Food Scanner, (e) NHS Couch to 5k, apps has been to date; and if he will provide a breakdown of costs for each those apps.

Neil O'Brien: Costs to date for the Better Health Rewards app programme pilot are within the advertised contract value of up to £2 million, and the Department has committed up to £3 million to be spent on rewards for participants. The Department, and previously Public Health England, has held multiple contracts to develop and deliver a suite of behavioural change apps to support the Department’s objective to tackle the biggest preventable risk factors for ill health.The following table shows the costs for the development and delivery of the NHS Weight Loss Plan, NHS Active 10 Walking Tracker, NHS Food Scanner and NHS Couch to 5k apps up to and including March 2022. These figures do not include all the cross-cutting development costs covering multiple services across the digital portfolio, as these cannot be split into the exact cost per app.App NameLaunch DateTotal development costs up to 2021/22 financial yearDownload figures to dateNHS Weight Loss PlanJuly 2020£529,2652.5 million downloadsNHS Active 10 Walking TrackerFeb 2017£882,0421.35 million downloadsNHS Food ScannerJanuary 2017£1,002,8495.3 million downloadsNHS Couch to 5KMarch 2016£1,090,6826 million downloads

Dental Services

Wes Streeting: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what is the total number of patients treated by dentists on the NHS in each of the last five years.

Wes Streeting: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what is the total number of units of dental activity conducted for NHS patients in England in each of the past five years.

Neil O'Brien: NHS Digital publishes Dental Statistics for England which is available from the following link:https://digital.nhs.uk/data-and-information/publications/statistical/nhs-dental-statistics/2021-22-annual-report

Drugs: Manufacturing Industries

Taiwo Owatemi: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will make an assessment of the implications for his policies of proposals published on 1 March 2023 by the Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry for an Investment Facility, including the potential impact of those proposals on (a) clinical research capacity, (b) genomics capacity, (c) real world data capability and (d) equitable medicines use.

Will Quince: The Department has seen the proposals published on 1 March; they will be considered as part of formal negotiations for a future voluntary scheme.The Government is open to ideas about how a successor to the voluntary scheme for branded medicines pricing and access should operate from 2024 onwards and will work with industry to agree a mutually beneficial successor that supports better patient outcomes, ensures the sustainability of National Health Service spend on branded medicines, and enables a strong life sciences industry.

Social Services: Surveys

Rebecca Long Bailey: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to the national NHS Adult Social Care surveys, how many responses to that survey have been received in each year for the past three years; and what the overall response rate to that survey was in those years.

Helen Whately: For the Personal Social Services Adult Social Care Survey published by NHS Digital in 2021/22, 59,770 responses were received from a sample of 220,360 service users, a response rate of 27%. The 2020/21 survey was made voluntary for local authorities to undertake due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Eighteen local authorities took part in the survey and 6,695 responses were received from a sample of 24,700 service users, a response rate of 27%. In 2019/20, there were 62,520 responses from a sample of 213,225 service users, a response rate of 29%.

Cancer: Health Services

Damien Moore: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment his Department has made of the potential merits of a separate strategy for rare and less survivable cancers.

Helen Whately: The Major Conditions Strategy will set out our approach to tackling the different causes of mortality and ill health. It will include six conditions, one of which is cancer.This Strategy will draw on previous work on cancer, including over 5,000 submissions provided to the Department as part of our Call for Evidence last year.

Cancer: Medical Treatments

Rachael Maskell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what guidance his Department issues on the maximum time it should take for a patient to travel to receive (a) chemotherapy or (b) radiotherapy treatment.

Helen Whately: There is no limit on the distance that would be required for someone to receive cancer treatment. Specialised services are not available in every local hospital because they have to be delivered by specialist teams of health professionals who have the necessary skills, experience and access to equipment and medicines.Patient-specific requirements are based on what each individual could manage and cope with and would be discussed between the patient and clinician. Patients travelling for cancer treatment via NHS Patient Transport Services (PTS) are exempt from any eligibility checks both on medical and mobility grounds and are automatically deemed PTS eligible for both the inbound and outbound journeys as frequently as these are required.

Asylum: Epilepsy

Kirsten Oswald: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what estimate he has made of the number of asylum seekers with epilepsy in the UK.

Kirsten Oswald: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to support asylum seekers who have epilepsy.

Kirsten Oswald: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what estimate he has made of the number of asylum seekers with epilepsy in each of the four UK nations.

Helen Whately: We do not have estimates of the number of asylum seekers with epilepsy in the United Kingdom. People seeking asylum can access National Health Service healthcare services.

Chronic Illnesses: Health Services

Feryal Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what plans he has to ensure that his Department's Major Conditions Strategy takes into account the views and experiences of patients with long term conditions.

Feryal Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department is taking steps to ensure that the Major Conditions Strategy will help tackle the (a) workforce, (b) access to services, and (c) access to treatment challenges faced by people with musculoskeletal conditions.

Feryal Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department is taking steps to ensure that the Major Conditions Strategy will help improve remission rates for people living with musculoskeletal conditions.

Feryal Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department is taking steps to ensure that the Major Conditions Strategy will help tackle postcode variations in access to treatment for patients with inflammatory rheumatological conditions.

Helen Whately: The Major Conditions Strategy will set out our approach to tackling the biggest causes of mortality and ill-health.We will look at the health of people at all stages of life – from prevention through to living well with one or more major conditions. We will also include a focus on geographical differences in health that contribute to variations in health outcomes.We will continue to work closely with stakeholders, citizens and the National Health Service in coming weeks to identify actions that will have the most impact. An interim report will be published in the summer, which will set out the timescale for the publication of the Strategy.

Cancer: Health Services

Damien Moore: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that access to innovative therapies for (a) gastric cancer and (b) other less survivable cancers is included in its Major Conditions Strategy.

Helen Whately: The Major Conditions Strategy will look at the treatment and prevention of cancer, covering the patient pathway. The strategy will look at a wide range of interventions and enablers to improve outcomes and experience for cancer patients. This Strategy will draw on previous work on cancer, including over 5,000 submissions provided to the Department as part of our Call for Evidence last year.  We will continue to work closely with stakeholders, citizens, and the National Health Service in coming weeks to identify actions for the Strategy that will have the most impact.

Cancer: Health Services

Rachael Maskell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to assess future workforce requirements in cancer services.

Helen Whately: The Long Term Workforce Plan looks across the whole of the National Health Service workforce to provide an assessment of future need over the next 15 years. No explicit assessments will be made in the Long Term Workforce Plan with regards to the cancer workforce, but it will be covered within the overall assessment of future need.

Palliative Care: Staff

Rachael Maskell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will produce a workforce plan for palliative care services.

Helen Whately: The Long Term Workforce Plan looks across the whole of the National Health Service workforce to provide an assessment of future need over the next 15 years. No explicit assessments will be made in the Long Term Workforce Plan with regards to the palliative care services workforce, but it will be covered within the overall assessment of future need. There are no plans at present for a specific palliative care workforce strategy.

UK Health Security Agency: Nurseries

Richard Foord: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether her Department has had discussions with (a) the UK Health Security Agency and (b) Wiltshire Council on the decision to close Hickory House nursery at Porton Down science park.

Maria Caulfield: The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) developed a business case for future options for nursery provision at Porton Down. After careful consideration it was concluded that UKHSA are not able to prioritise such capital costs for physical reprovision of a nursery against other needs. UKHSA are continuing to engage with partners to explore any other opportunities.There have been joint meetings with Wiltshire Council, the Defence Science and Technology Laboratory and Porton Biopharma Ltd that use the nursery. A joint meeting with impacted staff and families took place on 6 March 2023.

Cancer: Diagnosis

Rachael Maskell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to help integrated care boards expand cancer diagnostic services to achieve earlier disease detection.

Helen Whately: To support elective recovery and reduce waiting times, the Government has worked with NHS England to publish the Delivery plan for tackling the COVID-19 backlogs in elective care, ‘the elective recovery plan’, in February 2022. To deliver this plan, the Government plans to spend more than £8 billion from 2022/23 to 2024/25 to help drive up and protect elective activity, including cancer diagnosis and treatment activity. The Government awarded £2.3 billion at the 2021 Spending Review to transform diagnostic services over the next three years. As part of this investment, up to 160 new Community Diagnostic Centres will deliver additional diagnostic capacity in England. As stated in the 2023/24 priorities and operational planning guidance, NHS England will allocate funding to integrated care boards and regional commissioners and continue to work with systems and providers to maximise the impact of the funding.

Cancer: Health Services

Rachael Maskell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to reduce waiting times for cancer treatment.

Helen Whately: To support elective recovery and reduce waiting times, including for cancer treatment, the Government has worked with NHS England to publish the Delivery plan for tackling the COVID-19 backlogs in elective care, the ‘elective recovery plan’, in February 2022. To deliver this plan, the Government plans to spend more than £8 billion from 2022/23 to 2024/25 to help drive up and protect elective activity, including cancer diagnosis and treatment activity.  This will further be supported by the additional £3.3 billion of funding in each of the next two years announced at the Autumn Statement to support the National Health Service.

Social Services: Labour Turnover

Liz Kendall: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 7 February to Question 135222, what the average length of service was for those carers who left the adult social care sector.

Helen Whately: We do not hold data on what the average length of service was for the carers identified in Question 135222.

Public Health: Finance

Mike Amesbury: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of the level of funding of the public health grant to local authorities.

Neil O'Brien: At the Spending Review 2021, we considered the need for local authority public health funding and confirmed that the public health grant to local authorities would increase over the settlement period. In 2022/23, the Grant increased by 2.81% to £3.417 billion. This is in addition to targeted investment through local Government in start for life support and drug and alcohol treatment services.We will announce 2023/24 Public Health Grant allocations to local authorities shortly, and in doing so will consider the impact of changes to pay and inflation trends and forecasts since the Spending Review.

Chronic Illnesses: Health Services

Feryal Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to improve services for patients with long term conditions not covered by his Department’s Major Conditions Strategy.

Helen Whately: The majority of services for patients with long term conditions are commissioned locally by integrated care boards, who are best placed to plan the provision of service improvement subject to local prioritisation and funding.The Department will continue work to improve the treatment and care people receive for a range of long term conditions through work such as the ME/CFS Delivery Plan, the Women’s Health Strategy and the Acquired Brain Injury strategy. The Department is also working closely with NHS England on a range of service improvement initiatives, including the Neurosciences Transformation Programme and the Renal Services Transformation Programme.

Dermatology: Health Services

Feryal Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to the Getting It Right First Time programme review of dermatology services, what steps his Department is taking to help tackle regional variations in adherence to National Institute for Health and Care Excellence guidance on the provision of biologics for treatment of (a) psoriasis and (b) atopic dermatitis.

Helen Whately: The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) has published a range of technology appraisal guidance on the use of biologics for treatment of both psoriasis and atopic dermatitis. To help tackle regional variations in adherence to guidance, NICE promotes guidance via its website, newsletters and other media.

Radiotherapy: Medical Equipment

Rachael Maskell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how much his Department has allocated for the replacement of radiotherapy machines in 2023.

Helen Whately: From April 2022, the responsibility for investing in new radiotherapy machines sits with local systems. This is supported by the 2021 Spending Review, which set aside £12 billion in operational capital for the National Health Service in 2022 to 2025 and the recent Capital Planning Guidance. This states that integrated care systems will need to develop replacement plans as part of their multi-year capital plans, in partnership with specialised commissioners, Cancer Alliances and Radiotherapy Operational Delivery Networks, based on an assessment of equipment age, capacity and demand, opportunities to improve access and service risk.

Diabetes: Children

Mr Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will hold discussions with the National Diabetes Audit group on that group's decision not to include the rate of diabetes among children on their database.

Helen Whately: The National Clinical Audit and Patient Outcomes Programme includes two diabetes audits focusing on adults and children respectively due to the differences in the way that diabetes care and services are delivered for adults and children. The Data and Analytics Directorate at NHS England collect and analyse data relating to adults with diabetes for the National Diabetes Audit while the Royal College of Paediatric Child Health deliver the National Paediatric Diabetes Audit.

Cancer: Research

Rachael Maskell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department has conducted comparative analysis of the countries which have higher cancer survival rates and lower disease rates than those in the UK and the interventions those countries have made.

Helen Whately: The Department has undertaken analyses previously, especially of comparative cancer survival rates and contributors to variations between different countries. However, the different factors and methods used in such analyses are very complex and subject to interpretation of issues such as public health, risk factors, and patient pathways.An example of this can be seen in the Department’s evidence to the Health and Social Care Select Committee Inquiry into cancer services, submitted and published in September 2021, available at the following link:https://committees.parliament.uk/writtenevidence/39021/pdf/

Cervical Cancer

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether it is his policy to develop a strategy for the elimination of cervical cancer.

Helen Whately: In England, we are increasing the uptake of the human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination to the World Health Organization’s (WHO) target of 90% through dedicated immunisation teams in schools where a 100% offer is made to all school-aged children eligible for these vaccinations. Annually, HPV vaccines are promoted to university students as they start the Autumn term, and NHS England are planning a further HPV awareness campaign.The NHS Cervical Screening Programme already aligns with the WHO’s target of 70% of women screened using a high-performance test by 35 and 45 years old. Work is ongoing to improve this beyond the WHO target, through exploration into screening self-sampling via the YouScreen and HPValidate research.A range of improvements and innovations have been brought in to help improve uptake in the NHS Cervical Screening Programme. For example, in some Primary Care Network areas, appointments can now be made in any Primary Care setting, during evenings and on weekends, via integrated sexual health clinics. There is currently no intention to publish a plan detailing these programmes.

Integrated Care Boards

Rachael Maskell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of trends in the level of demand for services provided by integrated care boards on (a) elective recovery standards and (b) other long-term preventative health care programmes provided by those services.

Helen Whately: No specific assessment has been made. However, NHS England has published the Elective Recovery Plan and Cardiovascular Disease (CVD) Prevention Recovery plan in 2022 to support the integrated care boards in setting out action across high-impact areas.

Community Diagnostic Centres

Rachael Maskell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to monitor progress against its target to deliver 1.1 million tests, checks and scans each year through the operational community diagnostic centres across England.

Helen Whately: As set out in the NHS Delivery Plan for tackling the COVID-19 backlog of elective care, the target is for up to 160 community diagnostic centres (CDCs) to deliver up to 17 million checks, tests and scans by March 2025, with the capacity for 9 million more per year once they are all fully operational. There is no public ambition for in-year delivery of tests, checks and scans.As of 19 February 2023, there are 93 operational CDCs and 3.2 million tests have been delivered since the first CDC went live in July 2021. NHS England collects weekly activity data from systems so that they can monitor progress against the target. Ministers are regularly updated on progress.

Diseases: Health Services

Andrew Gwynne: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, when the Major Diseases Strategy will be published.

Helen Whately: An interim report of the Major Conditions Strategy will be published in the summer.

Disability Aids: Procurement

Mr Virendra Sharma: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of  (a) supply chain delays, (b) manufacturing costs and (c) procurement processes on the length of time it takes for people to receive mobility equipment.

Helen Whately: The Department has regular engagement with suppliers to monitor continuity of supply to patients. A number of global factors such as shipping, material sourcing and local lockdowns have impacted the supply of mobility aids over the past year, especially where these are sourced from the Far East. However, these pressures are alleviating and there is evidence of continuing improvement in the supply position. A large proportion of mobility aids are recovered and reconditioned in the United Kingdom by providers which mitigates the impact of disruptions in the supply of new products. Additionally, the diversity of suppliers to the market means that alternatives are often available where individual suppliers may experience disruption to supply.

Dementia

Harriett Baldwin: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the level of undiagnosed dementia in (a) Tenbury Wells County Council Division, (b) Worcestershire and (c) England.

Helen Whately: The information requested is not held. However, the latest dementia diagnosis rate figures reported by NHS Digital are available for January 2023. NHS Digital estimates there are 675,542 people over the age of 65 years old living with dementia in England, of which 417,797 have a recorded dementia diagnosis. NHS Digital also estimates there are 12,119 people over the age of 65 years old living with dementia in the NHS Herefordshire and Worcestershire Integrate Care Board, of which 6,290 have a recorded dementia diagnosis. This information is not collected for Tenbury Wells County Council Division.

Cancer: Research

Rachael Maskell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department is taking steps to target research into reducing mortality rates in cancers for which there are poor prognosis.

Helen Whately: The Department invests in health research through the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR). The NIHR welcomes funding applications for research into any aspect of human health, including cancers for which there are poor prognoses. As with other Government funders of health research, the NIHR does not allocate funding for specific disease areas. The level of research spend in a particular area, is driven by factors including scientific potential and the number and scale of successful funding applications.

Parkinson's Disease: Research

Navendu Mishra: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how much his Department has allocated to medical research into Parkinson's disease in each of the last three years.

Helen Whately: The Department funds research into Parkinson’s Disease through the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR). The NIHR allocated £21 million to Parkinson’s Disease medical research projects over the last three years. Additionally, NIHR has supported the delivery of over 175 studies relating to research into Parkinson’s disease via the Clinical Research Network infrastructure.

Brain: Tumours

Lisa Nandy: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department has made an assessment of the potential merits of developing a strategic plan for the (a) funding and (b) other resourcing of (i) discovery, (ii) translational and (iii) clinical research into brain tumours.

Helen Whately: The Department has published its Health Infrastructure Plan in September 2019 that sets out the Government’s strategy and priorities for investing in the National Health Service estate, including in cancer centres. We are at present working on an update to this strategy through to 2030. Currently, we do not have a national capital programme strictly dedicated to cancer centres. However, there are several programmes, including the Targeted Investment Fund, the New Hospital Programme and the Hospital Upgrades Programme, that are funding upgrades to existing cancer centres. These schemes are assessed on a case-by-case basis.

Cancer: Health Services

Dan Jarvis: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of providing funding for upgrades to existing cancer centres.

Helen Whately: The Department has published its Health Infrastructure Plan in September 2019 that sets out the Government’s strategy and priorities for investing in the National Health Service estate, including in cancer centres. We are at present working on an update to this strategy through to 2030. Currently, we do not have a national capital programme strictly dedicated to cancer centres. However, there are several programmes, including the Targeted Investment Fund, the New Hospital Programme and the Hospital Upgrades Programme, that are funding upgrades to existing cancer centres. These schemes are assessed on a case-by-case basis.

Health Services

Stephanie Peacock: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to the Written Statement of 24 January 2023 on Government Action on Major Conditions and Diseases, HCWS514, whether the Major Conditions Strategy will be a 5 or 10 year strategy.

Helen Whately: The Strategy will support our health and care system, working in partnership with others, to tackle the biggest causes of mortality and ill-health over both the short and long term.

Gender Dysphoria: Health Services

Mr Ranil Jayawardena: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, when he plans to publish the interim service specification for specialist gender dysphoria services for children and young people.

Maria Caulfield: NHS England is currently reviewing and analysing the consultation responses. A report summarising all the feedback received will be published as soon as possible, alongside the final interim service specification.

Gender Dysphoria: Health Services

Mr Ranil Jayawardena: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what clinical disciplines will be included in the multi-disciplinary teams that replace the Tavistock and Portman NHS Foundation Trust Gender Identity Development Service.

Maria Caulfield: In October 2022, NHS England published a proposed interim service specification for the new services for the purpose of public consultation. The proposed service specification describes that the service should include consultant level paediatricians, endocrinologists, psychologists and specialists in autism, attention deficit with hyperactivity disorder and other neuro-developmental conditions. NHS England will agree a final version of the service specification once it has considered the outcome of the public consultation.

Gender Dysphoria: Health Services

Mr Ranil Jayawardena: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many new patients have been referred to the Tavistock and Portman NHS Foundation Trust Gender Identity Development Service since its closure was announced.

Maria Caulfield: NHS England is responsible for commissioning gender identity development services for children and young people. Between 10 October and 3 March 2023, 1,080 referrals were made to the Tavistock and Portman NHS Foundation Trust Gender Identity Development Service. Data for the period 28 July to 9 October 2022 are not currently available.

Influenza: Vaccination

John Spellar: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to the paper by the Joint Committee on Vaccinations and Immunisation, entitled Advice on influenza vaccines for 2023-24, published on 30 November 2022, whether it is his policy to take steps in line with the advice of the Joint Committee that flu vaccinations for secondary school children should be routine.

Maria Caulfield: The Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation published advice on 30 November 2022 regarding the 2023/24 seasonal flu vaccination programme. The Government is considering this advice and details about which cohorts will be offered a free seasonal flu vaccine in England in 2023/24, and which vaccines they will be offered, will be set out in due course.

Social Services: Fees and Charges

Margaret Greenwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what estimate he has made of the number of people in (a) Wirral West constituency and (b) England who have had debt management procedures, including automated reminders, letter before action and referral to debt collection agency, commenced against them for non-payment of (i) residential and (ii) non-residential social care charges in each of the last five financial years.

Helen Whately: No estimate has been made. Local authorities are responsible for managing their own debt management procedures under the Care Act 2014. The Department does not hold data on the number of people who have had debt management procedures commenced against them at either national or local level.

Social Services: Fees and Charges

Margaret Greenwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of the threat of court action for non-payment of social care charges on the mental health of care users.

Helen Whately: No assessment has been made. Each local authority is responsible for managing its debt recovery processes under the Care Act 2014. All debt recovery systems should be designed with a full understanding of the needs and capacities of the local population, including how different approaches may impact a person’s wellbeing. Local authorities also have a general duty to promote a person’s wellbeing and, as such, must consider whether debt has accrued due to factors outside of a person’s control.

Public Health: Finance

Helen Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 10 January 2023 to Question 114704 on Public Health: Finance, when his Department plans to inform local authorities of their public health grant budgets for 2023-24.

Neil O'Brien: We will announce 2023/24 Public Health Grant allocations to local authorities in England shortly.

Chlamydia: Health Services

Lloyd Russell-Moyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to tackle chlamydia in the UK.

Neil O'Brien: The aim of England’s National Chlamydia Screening Programme (NCSP) is to reduce the health harms caused by untreated chlamydia infection in women by ensuring all eligible women under the age of 25 years old are offered a chlamydia test.UK Health Security Agency works with providers and commissioners of sexual and reproductive health services to implement the NCSP, monitor levels of chlamydia testing and diagnoses through our national surveillance systems and evaluate the impact of chlamydia screening on health outcomes.

Gonorrhoea

Lloyd Russell-Moyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to tackle gonorrhoea in the UK.

Neil O'Brien: Local authorities are mandated to provide confidential, open access sexual health services. These services include testing and treatment for gonorrhoea. It is recommended that all those attending services with needs relating to sexually transmitted infections (STIs) are tested for gonorrhoea, syphilis, human immunodeficiency virus, and chlamydia, even if asymptomatic.UK Health Security Agency undertakes surveillance of testing and diagnoses of STIs at commissioned sexual health services, including online testing to monitor testing and diagnoses, and provide information on local and national trends in gonorrhoea.

Gonorrhoea

Lloyd Russell-Moyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to tackle multi-drug non-susceptible strains of gonorrhoea.

Neil O'Brien: The effectiveness of treatment for gonorrhoea continues to be threatened by the development of resistance to the last-line treatment, ceftriaxone. The UK Health Security Agency’s (UKHSA) Gonococcal Resistance to Antimicrobials Surveillance Programme (GRASP) includes a suite of testing and surveillance systems to detect and monitor antimicrobial resistance in Neisseria gonorrhoeae and potential treatment failures. GRASP reports annually on drug resistance in Neisseria gonorrhoeae in England and Wales and has directly influenced changes in treatment guidelines on three occasions.Additionally, all primary diagnostic laboratories test gonococcal isolates for susceptibility to ceftriaxone and refer suspected resistant isolates to the UKHSA national reference laboratory for confirmatory testing and follow-up in real-time. UKHSA has published guidance on managing cases of ceftriaxone-resistant gonorrhoea and performs a risk assessment for each case. If there is a risk of transmission within England, UKHSA instigates an Incident Response to contain spread.

HIV Infection

Lloyd Russell-Moyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department plans to develop a national campaign to prevent anti-HIV stigma.

Neil O'Brien: Improving quality of life for people living with human immunodeficiency virus and addressing stigma is a key objective in our HIV Action Plan, published in December 2021. As part of the plan, the Department is investing over £3.5 million from 2021 to 2024 to deliver the National HIV Prevention Programme. This includes the National HIV Testing Week which seeks to normalise and reduce barriers to testing, such as stigma. We are also working to improve workforce training in the National Health Service to increase HIV awareness and in collaboration with the United Kingdom Health Security Agency (UKHSA) continue to monitor the levels of stigma and discrimination experienced by people living with HIV within the health and social care system as well as within community settings. Results from the HIV patient survey Positive Voices carried out by UKHSA and academic partners will be published in 2023 and include more granular data to help us understand people’s experiences with HIV stigma.

Influenza: Vaccination

Maria Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many and what proportion of children aged between two and 18 years old have received the flu vaccination in each region during the 2022-23 winter period.

Maria Caulfield: We do not hold the information in the format requested. Data for two and three year old children is not available in the format requested. However, it is available by local authority, grouped by National Health Service region here available at the following link:https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/seasonal-influenza-vaccine-uptake-in-gp-patients-monthly-data-2022-to-2023Data for eligible at risk 17 and 18 year olds is not available in the format requested.The following table shows the percentage vaccine uptake, number registered and number vaccinated in NHS region of all eligible school age children aged four to 16 years old.NHS RegionPercentage vaccine uptakeNumber registeredNumber vaccinatedEast of England48.3942,745455,731London33.21,164,446387,090Midlands43.41,511,057655,318North East and Yorkshire47.11,147,216540,117North West43.6964,475420,346South East49.31,304,640643,553South West47.8737,216352,082Source: UK Health Security AgencyNote:Monthly data was published in February 2023 and includes all vaccinations from 1 September 2022 to 31 January 2023.

Brain: Tumours

Lisa Nandy: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department is taking steps to increase access to early phase cancer clinical trials for brain tumour patients.

Helen Whately: The Department invests in health research through the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR). NIHR has recently invested over £969 million to strengthen the infrastructure supporting Phase 1 trial capacity over the next five years. This includes funding for the NIHR Biomedical Research Centres, NIHR Clinical Research Facilities and Experimental Cancer Medicine Centres.Additionally, NIHR ‘Be Part of Research’ is an online service, now also available on the NHS App, to help people find and take part in health care research including cancer studies.

Female Genital Mutilation

Gill Furniss: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to help support local authorities to develop interventions to safeguard against female genital mutilation.

Maria Caulfield: Data on Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) is collected in the FGM Enhanced Dataset by National Health Service healthcare providers in England. This dataset presents a national picture of the prevalence of FGM in England and supports work in the NHS to prevent and treat FGM. It is therefore a valuable information source supporting the identification, commissioning and management of FGM services locally.The Home Office’s FGM Team provides a range of resources for frontline professionals. This consists of an FGM resource pack, which includes a section for local authorities, a free e-learning course, statutory multi-agency guidance and a range of communications materials.

Heart Diseases: Stockport

Navendu Mishra: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what the average waiting time was for patients to receive an ECG heart monitor assessment in the Stockport Integrated Care Partnership Network as of 1 March 2023.

Helen Whately: The information requested is not held centrally.

Electronic Cigarettes: Health Hazards

Dr Neil Hudson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether the Government has made an assessment of the potential impact of vaping on people who do not smoke tobacco.

Neil O'Brien: The Department has commissioned and published a series of evidence reviews on vaping which included an assessment on the impact of vaping on people that do not smoke tobacco. The final report of the series, Nicotine vaping in England published in September 2022, found that in the short and medium term, vaping poses a small fraction of the risks of smoking, but that vaping is not risk-free, particularly for people who have never smoked.

Mental Health Services: Public Consultation

Dr Rosena Allin-Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether consultation responses to the 10-year plan to improve mental health will be used to inform his Department's Major Conditions Strategy.

Maria Caulfield: In response to the Mental Health and Well-Being call for evidence, we received over 5,000 responses from individuals and organisations representing a range of different views and groups. These are being considered in the development of both the Major Conditions Strategy and separate Suicide Prevention Strategy.

Department for Work and Pensions

Social Security Benefits: Appeals

Kate Osamor: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what the average time was for his Department to reinstate payments for (a) Employment and Support Allowance, (b) Universal Credit and (c) Personal Independence Payment following a tribunal allowing an appeal in each month between January 2020 and March 2023.

Kate Osamor: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether her Department has a target timescale for reinstating claims for (a) Universal Credit, (b) Personal Independence Payment and (c) Employment and Support Allowance after an appeal has been allowed.

Kate Osamor: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if he will publish guidance on the steps a claimant should take when his Department fails to reinstate a claim following a successful appeal.

Tom Pursglove: Personal Independence Payment has a target of 28 days for implementing a tribunal’s decision and is currently averaging around 10 days. Employment and Support Allowance and Universal Credit do not have an overarching target. Decisions are implemented as quickly as possible, with some exceptions. For all three benefits, information on the average time to reinstate payments for the period requested is not collated centrally and could only be obtained at disproportionate cost. If a decision is not implemented timeously, there is guidance published by HMCTS and available on Gov.UK, entitled ‘How to appeal against a decision made by the Department for Work and Pensions’.  The main reason that a tribunal’s decision might not be implemented timeously, is if the Secretary of State considers that the decision may contain an error of law and suspends payment of the tribunal’s award whilst that is considered. In such a case the claimant must be notified that this is being done. If the claimant is not notified of a reason for the decision not being implemented, then they can contact the department: this can be done by using the telephone numbers on Gov.UK, on the decision letter they received, or by attending a Jobcentre; if it is a UC appeal they can use their journal.

Employment and Support Allowance

Jonathan Ashworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what system is used to produce standardised letters for ESA recipients.

Tom Pursglove: The Jobseekers Allowance Payments System which hosts Employment and Support Allowance, produces notifications based on the individual circumstances of each case which would require a letter to be sent to a customer. These notifications are then transferred in bulk to the third-party supplier responsible for bulk print management services in DWP. The third-party supplier then produces individual letters which are then sent out to those customers or their representatives.

Local Housing Allowance

Hywel Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many people in (a) Wales, (b) Scotland and (c) England who are only eligible for the Shared Accommodation Local Housing Allowance rate reside in one-bedroom homes.

Mims Davies: The information requested is not readily available and to provide it would incur disproportionate costs.

Personal Independence Payment

Vicky Foxcroft: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many new personal independence payment registrations were made by people who had previously been in receipt of (a) personal independence payment or (b) disability living allowance but at the time of registration were not in receipt of either of those benefits for (i) each of the last five years and (ii) between 1 January and 6 March 2023.

Tom Pursglove: Data on Personal Independence Payment (PIP) registrations after October 2022 cannot be shared as the information is intended for publication at a future date. The department does not make any indication of the statistics public ahead of release. The table below provides the data for new registrations to PIP in the most recent five full years where claimants had previously been in receipt of PIP or Disability Living Allowance (DLA) prior to making a new PIP registration.Table (a): New registrations to PIP with previous receipt of PIP or DLA20172018201920202021Previously received PIP1840029000313002650031500Previously received DLA6620071400706006050091300  Sources: PIP Atomic Data Store (ADS), Work and Pensions Longitudinal Study (WPLS) Notes:Data covers England and Wales only;People registering on PIP may previously have been on both PIP and DLA, and so would be counted twice in these figures;DLA data is only available from May 2002;Figures have been rounded to the nearest 100.

Local Housing Allowance: Wales

Hywel Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if he will make an estimate of the average difference between the rent being paid by individuals in receipt of Local Housing Allowance (LHA) and the LHA rate in each local authority in Wales in the most recent period for which data is available.

Mims Davies: As of August 2022, the average monthly difference between the contractual rent for individuals in receipt of Local Housing Allowance (LHA) and the LHA rate in each Welsh local authority is as below, figures are rounded to the nearest £1: Local AuthorityAverage Difference between rent and LHA rateBlaenau Gwent£87Bridgend£61Caerphilly£82Cardiff£9Carmarthenshire£67Ceredigion£54Conwy£78Denbighshire£70Flintshire£55Gwynedd£72Isle of Anglesey£54Merthyr Tydfil£66Monmouthshire£98Neath Port Talbot£74Newport£61Pembrokeshire£77Powys£86Rhondda Cynon Taf£68Swansea£30Torfaen£62Vale of Glamorgan£84Wrexham£48  Shared Accommodation Rate (SAR) cases have been excluded due to data quality issues. Average difference figures include both households where the rent paid by individuals is lower than the LHA and households where the rent paid by individuals is higher than the LHA. Positive values relate to where monthly rent is higher than the monthly LHA rate on average in a local authority.

Child Maintenance Service

Karin Smyth: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps he is taking to ensure the timely allocation of complaints about the Child Maintenance Service for investigation by independent case examiner investigators.

Mims Davies: The ICE reviews complaints where the customer has exhausted the relevant complaints process and remains dissatisfied. Information about ICE investigation report outcomes is routinely included in the Independent Case Examiner’s Annual Report, which is published on the ICE page of the gov.uk website. The ICE Office can only accept a complaint for investigation once the customer has exhausted the relevant DWP complaints process. The ICE process has several stages. When a referral is received into the office, the team initially considers whether, without undertaking a detailed examination of the evidence, a resolution can be brokered with the relevant department or its supplier. If resolution cannot be achieved, and the complaint is accepted, the case awaits allocation to an investigator who, following a review of the evidence, will first consider if settlement is appropriate. This requires the relevant department or its supplier to agree action with the complainant. Full investigation reports of detailed findings and any recommendations for redress are based on a thorough examination of case evidence. Cases are currently, broadly, brought into investigation according to the date on which the complaint was accepted. At this point the customer (or their representative) is given an indication of when the investigation is likely to commence and how long it is likely to take. This gives the customer a far better sense of the process and what to expect from it. The cases appropriate for a full investigation are the most complex and the Independent Case Examiner will not compromise the quality of the investigation to achieve the 20 week aim. The ICE office continues to review its internal processes and structures to make the most efficient use of its investigative resource. The majority of those staff newly-recruited in 2022-23 have been deployed on CMS cases. A further 6 staff were recruited in January. Once they have consolidated training, further resource will be deployed on CMS cases.

Universal Credit

Jonathan Ashworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the Answer of 6 March 2023 to Question 156146 on Universal Credit, if he will publish the average monthly into work rates for those in the Universal Credit Intensive Work Search conditionality group with a duration of (a) six months or more, (b) six to eight months, (c) nine to 11 months and (iv) 12 months or more.

Guy Opperman: The information requested is given in the table below. 6 to 8 months9 to 11 months12+ monthsAll 6+ months8.2%6.5%3.9%4.9% Notes:Source: UC Management Information and HMRC Real Time Information, February 2022 to January 2023.The Into Work rate is the proportion of UC claimants who enter work each month out of those who in the previous month were not working and in the Intensive Work Search conditionality group.Claimants are measured as moving into work if they leave UC and have earnings in Real Time Information data, or if they remain in UC and have earnings in Real Time Information data or self-declare employed earnings or self-employed work to DWP.Only movements into work for claimants who spend a full month in the Intensive Work Search conditionality group without earnings are included in this measure.Duration in Intensive Work Search is measured by the number of consecutive months claimants were in this conditionality group at the end of a UC assessment period

Employment and Support Allowance

Jonathan Ashworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of including the type and nature of ESA awards on departmental written communications.

Tom Pursglove: ESA entitlement letters explain what a customer’s ESA is based on and contain information on relevant components. The DWP has a specific resource currently reviewing the suite of ESA letters to improve language and content where appropriate.

Employment: Epilepsy

Kirsten Oswald: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what estimate he has made of the number of people with epilepsy in long-term employment.

Tom Pursglove: Estimates from the Annual Population Survey (APS) show that there were 177,000 individuals of working-age (16 to 64) in the UK who reported epilepsy as their main long-term health condition in 2021/22 (Employment of disabled people 2022 - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk) - Table POP003. Of these, approximately 96,000 (55%) were in employment, with 83% (80,000) of those employed for 12 months or more. There is no recognised definition of long-term employment. 12 months or more has been used because this is the length of time used to define long-term unemployment.

Social Security Benefits: Appeals

Kate Osamor: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many and what proportion of claimants who were given a negative decision following the suspension of their claim by the risk review team (a) appealed that decision and (b) had a tribunal allow their appeal.

Tom Pursglove: 212 out of 188,119 claimants who have had their cases suspended by the Risk Review Team have appealed the decision (0.11%) with 42 claimants having their appeal allowed, which is 0.02% of the total number of claims suspended.

Social Security Benefits: Appeals

Vicky Foxcroft: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many secondary appeals were lodged following an initial lapsed appeal due to the Secretary of State revising the decision before the initial appeal could be decided in each of the last five years.

Tom Pursglove: The information requested is not available and to provide it would incur disproportionate cost.

Universal Credit

Jonathan Ashworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the Answer of 17 June 2022 to Question 15246 on Universal Credit, if he will publish Universal Credit employment impact estimates comparable with those in Table 4 of the Universal Credit Full Service employment impact evaluation incorporating the most recently available data.

Guy Opperman: The roll out of Universal Credit Full Service was completed in December 2018 after which further comparisons are not possible.There are no plans to update the estimates in table 4 in the ‘Completing the move to Universal Credit’ paper which compared new Job Seekers Allowance and Universal Credit claims for childless singles between January and April 2018. This period was chosen as there was a sufficient number of jobcentres processing new claims in both benefit systems, which allowed the fairest and most robust comparison of employment impacts.

Universal Credit: Coronavirus

Sir Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if he will make an estimate of the income not received by his Department as a result of the suspension of deductions from Universal Credit during the covid-19 pandemic for the first 12 months from the start of that suspension.

Guy Opperman: The impact of pausing deductions resulted in debt recovery being delayed rather than lost.

Pensions: Consumer Information

Jonathan Ashworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, with reference to the Written Statement of 2 March 2023 on Pensions Dashboard Update, HCWS594, whether he is taking steps to ensure that people moving into retirement after the original first connection deadline of 31 August 2023 but before the unspecified new first connection deadline have adequate support to help them access their pension pots.

Laura Trott: The Department has not yet set out the date when Pensions Dashboards will be available to the general public. That will be announced when the Secretary of State is satisfied that dashboards are ready to support widespread use, based on a series of relevant factors. The Government currently offers free and impartial pensions guidance through the Money and Pensions Service, this is something we urge savers to use before accessing their retirement savings.

Universal Credit

Jonathan Ashworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the Answer of 6 March 2023 to Question 156145 on Universal Credit, if he will publish the equality impact assessment that was undertaken for the enhanced support element of the additional Jobcentre support pilot.

Guy Opperman: The Equality Impact Analysis was carried out for the original rollout of Additional Jobcentre Support. It is under continuous review as we improve our offer and is not appropriate to publish at this time.

Universal Credit: Uprating

Claire Hanna: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, with reference to the paper by Joseph Rowntree Fund and the Trussell Trust entitled Guarantee our Essentials, published on 27 February 2023, what recent assessment he had made of the potential merits of uplifting Universal Credit in the context of his upcoming Spring Budget.

Guy Opperman: In April, we are uprating benefit rates (including Universal Credit) and State Pensions by 10.1%. In order to increase the number of households who can benefit from these uprating decisions, the benefit cap levels are also increasing by the same amount. We will also work closely with officials so corresponding provisions can be made in Northern Ireland.

Universal Credit: Disqualification

David Linden: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the Answer of 8 March 2023 to Question 157005 on Universal Credit: Disqualification, when his Department last made an assessment of the effectiveness of the deterrent effect of benefit sanctions on Universal Credit claimants who have been subject to repeat adverse sanction decisions.

Guy Opperman: We have made no such assessment.

Flexible Support Fund

Jonathan Ashworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the Answer of 3 March 2023 to Question 155127 on the Flexible Support Fund, if he will provide further detail on what is funded in each of the categories (a) Partnerships, (b) Removing Barriers, (c) Training, (d) Childcare and (e) Other.

Guy Opperman: a) Partnership’s expenditure is grant funding provided to partner organisations to help deliver DWP objectives. Partners are often local organisations with existing community stakeholder relationships.b) Removing Barriers expenditure helps customers overcome barriers to secure job outcomes. This may include equipment to start work, clothing and travel cost support.c) Training expenditure includes the cost of training courses to give customers the required skills to secure jobs or move closer to work. This may also include the cost of travel by the customer to the training course.d) Childcare expenditure includes upfront childcare costs to cover the initial costs before the customer receives their first wage when starting work. This may also include support to customers on training courses.e) Other expenditure includes the costs associated with customer work experience.

Pensions: Consumer Information

Jonathan Ashworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, with reference to the Written Ministerial Statement of 2 March 2023 on Pensions Dashboard Update, HCWS594, how much expenditure his Department has allocated to deliver the Pensions Dashboard Programme in each of the next five financial years.

Laura Trott: In 2021, as part of the spending review DWP agreed PDP spend in 2023/4 would likely be £18.3million; in 2024/5 it would likely be £29.1million. But final budget will be agreed in due course.

Pensions: Consumer Information

Jonathan Ashworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, with reference to the Written Ministerial Statement of 2 March 2023 on Pensions Dashboard Update, HCWS594, how many full-time equivalent staff are employed (a) directly by his Department and (b) by the Money and Pensions Service to support the delivery of the Pensions Dashboard Programme.

Laura Trott: The Money and Pensions Service (MaPS) has set up the Pensions Dashboards Programme (PDP) to deliver pensions dashboards. As of 28 February 2023, there are 41.4 full-time equivalent staff who are directly employed from MaPS to work on Programme delivery. Although DWP staff are not directly involved with delivery at the Programme, as I stated in the Written Ministerial Statement, published on 2 March 2023, DWP will play a full role in the reset of the Programme.

Pensions: Consumer Information

Jonathan Ashworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, with reference to the Written Statement of 2 March 2023 on Pensions Dashboard Update, HCWS594, how much his Department has spent on the pensions dashboards programme since its establishment.

Laura Trott: The Pensions Dashboard Programme (PDP) has received £41.5M funding via the Financial Services Levy and the General Levy since the programme was established in July 2019 up to February 2023.

Carers: Pay and Social Security Benefits

Margaret Ferrier: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many and what proportion of unpaid carers in receipt of Universal Credit and the carer element also have earnings from paid employment.

Tom Pursglove: The information requested for Universal Credit is not readily available and to provide it would incur disproportionate cost.

Work Capability Assessment: Mental Illness

Jonathan Ashworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what recent discussions he has had with (a) ministerial colleagues and (b) stakeholders on taking steps to improve the experience of (i) Personal Independence Payment, (ii) Employment and Support Allowance and (iii) Universal Credit work capability assessments for people with mental health problems.

Tom Pursglove: In ‘Shaping Future Support - The Health and Disability Green Paper’, we explored how the benefits system can better meet the needs of claimants – including people with mental health conditions - now and in the future, by improving the claimant experience of our services, enabling independent living, and improving employment outcomes. As well as receiving over 4,500 written responses, we held over 40 consultation events with disabled people, people with health conditions and their representatives. We will bring forward proposals to respond to this in the White Paper. The Health Transformation Programme (HTP) is modernising health and disability benefit services to vastly improve the claimant experience. We regularly and continually engage with both local and national stakeholders to gather insight and feedback to help inform how we will transform our services.

Carer's Allowance: Appeals

Stephen Kinnock: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether his Department is taking steps to reduce the length of time to determine mandatory reconsiderations for carers allowance.

Tom Pursglove: A request for a Carer’s Allowance mandatory reconsideration is all part of a wider combined DWP Disputes Resolution Service and Retirement Services Directorate changes of circumstances process. The DWP has successfully reduced the head of work for Carer’s Allowance change of circumstances, which includes requests for a mandatory reconsideration, over the course of the last six months. The current average clearance time for processing a change of circumstances is 14.5 days and reducing steadily month-on-month, which will improve the time taken to process mandatory

Personal Independence Payment: Multiple Sclerosis

Abena Oppong-Asare: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what recent assessment his Department has made of the adequacy of the process of applying for Personal Independence Payments for people with multiple sclerosis.

Tom Pursglove: No such assessment has been made; however, the Personal Independence Payment (PIP) application process is kept under continual review to ensure all claimants can access the service. As a result, we have introduced a number of measures, which include: Relay UK, which provides a service if a claimant cannot hear or speak on the telephone, as well as dial-in for third parties on phone calls. We have also reworded the PIP2 questionnaire to improve clarity and introduced a digital PIP2 and evidence upload function, making it possible to claim for PIP without leaving the home. We have also expanded the assessment methods to include telephone and video, while introducing recording by request for telephone and face-to-face appointments. Claimants are also kept informed and updated at each stage of the process, through our improved text message service.

Carer's Allowance

Sir Greg Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if he will take steps to increase the rate of the Carer's Allowance; and if he will make a statement.

Tom Pursglove: The rate of Carer’s Allowance will increase from April by 10.1% to £76.75 a week. This means that, since 2010, it will have increased from £53.90 to £76.75 a week, providing just under an additional £1200 a year for carers through Carer’s Allowance. The Secretary of State undertakes a statutory annual review of State Pension and benefit rates and the level of Carer’s Allowance is protected by up-rating it each year in line with the Consumer Prices Index.

Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office

Eritrea: Religious Freedom

Patrick Grady: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether his Department is taking steps to help protect religious freedom in Eritrea.

Patrick Grady: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps his Department is taking in Eritrea to help ensure the right to access of information for the people of that country.

Patrick Grady: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps his Department is taking in Eritrea to help ensure the right to free in-country and beyond border movements for the people of that country.

Mr Andrew Mitchell: Freedom of religion or belief, of the media and of travel are important rights. The British Embassy in Asmara regularly raises human rights issues with the Eritrean Government, with the freedom of religion or belief being one of the UK's priorities; the Embassy has consistently called for the release of those arbitrarily incarcerated for their religion. The UK has encouraged the Eritrean Government to implement in full the agreed recommendations of the 2019 UN Human Rights Council Universal Periodic Review, through which we have raised our views, and to cooperate with the mandate of the Special Rapporteur for Human Rights in Eritrea.

Mozambique: Food Supply

Ms Lyn Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment he has made of the efficacy of climate-smart agriculture programmes for small farmers in Mozambique in improving food security in that country.

Mr Andrew Mitchell: Mozambique is extremely vulnerable to climate change shocks affecting the agriculture sector including cyclones, floods and droughts. The UK notes that climate-smart agriculture can offer increased farm productivity, income and resilience for smallholder farmers. The UK has supported communities affected by cyclones in Mozambique, particularly smallholders, to build their resilience and capacity to recommence farming after severe weather events. The UK has also piloted a commercial agriculture programme to support climate resilient infrastructure and conducted market scoping studies to identify opportunities for future development programming to enhance food security in the country. The British High Commission in Maputo is co-leading discussions between development partners and the Government of Mozambique to develop and implement a climate finance strategy and prioritize policy formulation and interventions that will improve food security and climate responsiveness.

Democratic Republic of Congo: Diplomatic Relations

Daniel Kawczynski: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps he is taking to help ensure engagement with the Democratic Republic of the Congo at the level of Head of (a) Government and (b) State.

Mr Andrew Mitchell: The UK has a long-standing commitment to supporting prosperity, development and stability in DRC. We strongly value our bilateral ties with DRC and have worked in recent months to strengthen this relationship, one that is beneficial to both countries. There have been several high-level visits in both directions, including the DRC President Tshisekedi's visit to London in October, which included audiences with His Majesty the King and the Foreign Secretary. I [Minister Mitchell] will be visiting DRC later this month where I will be meeting with the Congolese government, senior officials and Civil Society. We are in regular contact with the Government, at all levels, through our embassy in Kinshasa.

Democratic Republic of Congo: Armed Conflict

Daniel Kawczynski: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of imposing sanctions to help preserve the territorial integrity of the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

Mr Andrew Mitchell: We do not speculate about future sanctions.

Democratic Republic of Congo: Armed Conflict

Daniel Kawczynski: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment he has made of the implications for his policies of the statement of 9 December 2022 by the Spokesperson for the UN Secretary-General on the Democratic Republic of the Congo; and what recent discussions he has had with his (a) EU and (b) US counterparts on the situation in that country.

Mr Andrew Mitchell: We are monitoring the security situation in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) closely. It is vital that all parties work together to secure real de-escalation on the ground and an enduring political solution. We urge all parties to honour commitments made during regional political meetings, including the cessation of hostilities, respect for sovereignty and agreed withdrawal by armed group M23. We will continue to work with members of the international community, as well as the UN peacekeeping mission MONUSCO to counter violence and promote peace and stability in the DRC. We have taken over chair of the International Contact Group for the Great Lakes where we are in regular contact with likeminded partners, including the US and EU, and where we strive to achieve real progress on the ground in DRC.

Democratic Republic of Congo: Foreign Relations

Daniel Kawczynski: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what discussions he has had with Cabinet colleagues on potential steps to help ensure greater co-operation with the Democratic Republic of the Congo on (a) the critical minerals supply chain, (b) the carbon credit market, (c) agriculture, (d) energy and (f) infrastructure projects.

Mr Andrew Mitchell: The UK is scaling up its efforts to support Democratic Republic of Congo to safeguard its environment and adopt a low carbon development path. At COP27, the Prime Minister announced a new £90 million programme to support forests and forest livelihoods in the Congo Basin, maintaining the momentum achieved at COP26 where Congo basin forests were in the spotlight. Illicit mining in eastern DRC has historically provided financial support for a range of armed groups. To this end, the UK supports initiatives such as the Voluntary Principles on Security and Human rights in DRC, which aim to address security related human rights abuses in the mining sector.

Sri Lanka: Human Rights

Mr Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent discussions he has had with his Sri Lankan counterparts on human rights in Sri Lanka.

Anne-Marie Trevelyan: We regularly raise human rights with the Government of Sri Lanka. The British High Commission in Colombo was able to do so most recently with senior representatives of the Sri Lankan government in February. The FCDO Permanent Under Secretary, Sir Philip Barton, spoke to Sri Lankan Foreign Minister, Ali Sabry, during a visit to Sri Lanka on 17 January. He emphasised the UK would support human rights reform and encouraged efforts to take forward reconciliation.Additionally, we also make clear our concerns in statements to the UN Human Rights Council, including most recently on 7 March alongside other members of the Sri Lanka Core Group.

Ukraine: Humanitarian Aid

Jess Phillips: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to include psychosocial support for children in its Ukraine response; and what steps his Department has taken with the Home Office to help ensure that vulnerable children from Ukraine are protected during their journey to the UK.

Leo Docherty: The UK has provided humanitarian funding to UNICEF (£20 million), United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (£25 million) and the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (£15 million) to support people and children in need in Ukraine and the surrounding region. Our funding supports provision of psychosocial support, including through Blue Dot safe spaces along major crossing points and transit routes.FCDO has regular dialogues with Home Office and the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities on the Homes for Ukraine scheme. The government has issued guidance on GOV.UK for children and for parents and legal guardians of children travelling from Ukraine.https://www.gov.uk/guidance/homes-for-ukraine-welcome-guide-for-ukrainian-children-under-18https://www.gov.uk/guidance/homes-for-ukraine-guidance-for-parents-or-legal-guardians-children-and-minors-applying-without-parents#safeguarding-and-welfare

Myanmar: Sanctions

Valerie Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, how many staff in his Department are responsible for overseeing sanctions on sources of (a) revenue and (b) arms for the Burmese Military.

Anne-Marie Trevelyan: Sanctions Directorate has over 100 permanent staff delivering our global sanctions response. A large part of that figure includes staff that work flexibly across the all the UK's sanctions regimes, including Myanmar sanctions. This number does not include Myanmar-focused policy officials working on our wider strategy to constrain the regime's ability to access arms and finance which facilitate their campaign against the civilian population.

Ukraine: Humanitarian Aid

Jess Phillips: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether his Department is taking steps to ensure that humanitarian support to Ukraine includes targeted child protection and psychosocial support for children.

Leo Docherty: The UK has contributed £20 million to UNICEF's appeal for Ukraine and the region. This support has helped UNICEF provide targeted child protection, formal and non-formal education to over 850,000 children, as well as access for Ukrainian children to essential services including health, nutrition, specialist trauma, psychosocial support and Gender Based Violence services. An assessment of UNICEF delivery will be published in the Annual Review of the UK's humanitarian support this year.

Windsor Framework

Mr David Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, with reference to paragraph 57 of The Windsor Framework: a new way forward, CP806, what the evidential basis is for the statement that the Windsor Framework narrows the range of EU rules applicable in Northern Ireland to less than 3 per cent overall; and if he will publish a list of those rules.

Leo Docherty: The old Protocol already stripped EU rules from a series of key areas: with the full freedom to regulate for the services industries of the future; to control United Kingdom waters; to remain outside of the Common Agricultural Policy permanently; and to avoid alignment on social, broader environmental, consumer or competition law. The Windsor Framework goes further and disapplies a range of further EU rules on medicines, VAT and excise, the movement of goods and food and drink safety standards. By the EU's own calculations, that means less than 3 percent of EU rules now apply, with those that remain the bare minimum required to secure Northern Ireland's access to the EU market and avoid a hard border. The people of Northern Ireland, of course, retain the right to reject the application of those rules through next year's consent vote. Furthermore through the Stormont Brake we have ended the automatic presumption of any dynamic alignment for the future, putting democratic oversight and control at the heart of the Windsor Framework.

Bangladesh: Ahmadiyya

Mr Virendra Sharma: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what discussions his Department has had with the Bangladesh government on violence against Ahmadiyya Muslims; and if he will make a statement.

Anne-Marie Trevelyan: Preventing religious violence and upholding Freedom of Religion or Belief (FoRB) in Bangladesh remains a UK priority. During the UK-hosted Freedom of Religious Belief Conference in July, Lord (Tariq) Ahmad of Wimbledon raised the importance of FoRB with the Bangladesh Minister for Religious Affairs. Our support in Bangladesh aims to ensure that the rights of religious minorities, including the Ahmadiyya community, are respected and that these communities are protected from discrimination. We regularly engage with a wide range of civil society and NGO partners to understand the causes and effects of inter-religious conflict. The UK will continue to support FoRB through regular dialogue with the Government of Bangladesh and our development programme funding.

Sri Lanka: Politics and Government

Mr Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent assessment he has made of the implications for his policies of the political and security situation in Sri Lanka.

Anne-Marie Trevelyan: We believe that a stable and inclusive political settlement is an essential foundation for the economic recovery and growth that Sri Lanka needs and we closely monitor political, economic and security developments in this regard.The Minister for South Asia, Lord (Tariq) Ahmad of Wimbledon, and the British High Commissioner, have called for a peaceful, democratic and inclusive approach to resolving the current political and economic issues. They also emphasised that violence against peaceful protestors is unacceptable.We call on the Sri Lankan authorities to safeguard citizens' rights and ensure security responses are proportionate and in line with international human rights standards.

Israel: Palestinians

Munira Wilson: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether he has held discussions with his Israeli counterparts on opening an investigation into the deaths of Palestinians; and whether his Department is aware of any ongoing investigations into those deaths.

David Rutley: We frequently raise the issue of Palestinians killed and injured by Israeli Defence Forces in the West Bank and Gaza with the Israeli authorities. We encourage them to carry out swift, transparent and thorough investigations and, if wrongdoing is found, that those responsible be held to account. We will continue to stress the importance of the Israeli security forces providing appropriate protection to the Palestinian civilian population, particularly the need to protect children, and urge restraint in the use of live fire. The Foreign Secretary has made this clear to Israeli Foreign Minister Cohen during a phone call on 7 March.

Israel: Palestinians

Dr Rupa Huq: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent discussions he has had with his Israeli counterpart on the administrative detention of Palestinian citizens in Israel.

David Rutley: Israel's use of administrative detention, according to international law, should be used only when security makes this absolutely necessary. We ask the Israeli authorities to comply with their obligations under international law and either charge or release detainees. We remain committed to working with Israel to secure improvements to the practices surrounding children in detention in Israel. We have made clear our objections about the continued reports of ill-treatment of Palestinian minors in Israeli military detention. We also raise the continued transfer of Palestinian detainees to prisons inside Israel in violation of the Geneva convention.

Colombia: Demonstrations

Fabian Hamilton: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment he has made of the implications for his policies of reports that protestors who have occupied an oil production installation in Caqueta in Colombia have detained 79 police officers.

David Rutley: Now that the dispute has been resolved and hostages released following dialogue between the Colombian authorities and protestors, President Petro has called for an investigation into the deaths of two people. We agree with President Petro that dialogue is essential to resolve these types of confrontation. Colombia remains a UK Human Rights Priority Country and we have provided longstanding support through our Conflict, Stability and Security Fund (CSSF) programme to support at risk-Human Rights Defenders, and to help tackle the root causes of conflict and violence. We have also been clear that we support the right of all Colombians to protest peacefully.

Iran: Poisoning

Mr Virendra Sharma: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment he has made of reports of an alleged chemical attack on Iranian schoolgirls on 5 March 2023; and if he will make a statement.

David Rutley: We are aware of reports of mass poisonings of school girls across Iran since November and continue to monitor developments closely. On 3 March, the Minister for the Middle East, Lord (Tariq) Ahmad of Wimbledon urged the Iranian authorities to investigate these incidents urgently and with transparency. The Minister underlined that it is essential that all girls can exercise their human right to education without fear.

Ukraine: Humanitarian Aid

Jess Phillips: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, in the context of his Department's response to Ukraine, whether he has made an assessment of the potential merits of producing a cross-Departmental child rights strategy to help ensure that children are prioritised in UK's humanitarian response work.

Mr Andrew Mitchell: The UK is committed to the promotion, protection, and realisation of children's rights as enshrined in the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child. Children are a central part of FCDO's work to achieve the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals, whether through investing in children and ensuring access to education and health care, or through protecting them from violence and advocating for a child-rights approach to tackle child labour.We work closely with UNICEF to further children's rights, strengthen child protection in emergencies and expand opportunities for children. We have given £20 million pounds to the UNICEF appeal in Ukraine and the region.

Ukraine: Humanitarian Aid

Jess Phillips: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, if he will take steps to ensure that children are central to his Department's Ukraine response.

Leo Docherty: The UK prioritises protection of the most vulnerable and hard to reach, including children, in its humanitarian assistance to Ukraine. Our £15 million contribution to UNICEF's appeal for Ukraine helps provide education to over 850,000 children, and access to essential services. We use regularly multilateral fora to highlight child protection issues in the context of Russia's invasion, and led a joint statement on Ukrainian children in November to mark World Children's Day. On 16 June 2022, we sanctioned Russian Children's Rights Commissioner Maria Lvova-Belova for her alleged involvement in the forced transfer and adoption of Ukrainian children.

East Africa: Droughts

Bell Ribeiro-Addy: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what support his Department is providing to localised groups aiding efforts to mitigate the impact of the drought in East Africa.

Mr Andrew Mitchell: Local Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs) play an important role in delivering UK funded humanitarian support in East Africa. We work and consult closely with local NGOs to aid their planning, delivery and ability to access funding.In Ethiopia in 2022 the UK provided £7.6 million to the UN's Ethiopia Humanitarian Fund (EHF) which supported a range of international and Ethiopian NGOs. Similarly, the UK-funded 'Building Resilient Communities in Somalia programme has supported a number of Somali NGOs alongside international civil society organisations. More broadly, the FCDO supports a number of Country based Pooled Funds (CBPF) and in 2022, 21.7% of funding allocated by CBPFs went directly to national NGOs.The UK also uses its voice on multilateral boards to ensure decisions align with the International Development Strategy's commitment to locally-led decision-making.

East Africa: Droughts

Bell Ribeiro-Addy: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to support those countries in the East Africa experiencing severe drought.

Bell Ribeiro-Addy: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether his Department has made an assessment of the potential impact of reduction in Official Development Aid on the UK's support for countries impacted by the drought in East Africa

Mr Andrew Mitchell: The UK is committed to supporting communities facing severe impacts of the ongoing drought across East Africa, including the commitment to provide £156 million in humanitarian support this financial year.On the ground our support is providing millions of people with essential services and supplies including food, clean water, nutritional support and healthcare. Since 2019, the UK has allocated more than £1 billion in East Africa towards humanitarian operations, helping to reach tens of millions of people with life-saving aid. We are working with partners to ensure a robust humanitarian and development response across the region.The FCDO has considered the impact of reductions to ODA across the whole budget. Impact assessments are ongoing as specific allocation and spending decisions continue to be made.

Ministry of Defence

France: Joint Exercises

John Healey: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many (a) UK and (b) French personnel have taken part in training exercises through the Combined Joint Expeditionary Force in each year since its inception.

John Healey: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many UK-French training exercises have taken place through the Combined Joint Expeditionary Force in each year since its inception.

James Heappey: The information requested on the Combined Joint Expeditionary Force (CJEF) can be found in the table below: YearNumber of CJEF exercisesEstimated number of UK personnel taking part in exercise activity with the French Estimated number of French personnel taking part in exercise activity with the UK20152c.115c.11520161c.3,500c. 1,70020171c.15c.1520181c.20c.2020195c.230c.2302020/21All planned CJEF exercises were cancelled due to COVID20221c.25c.25  Notes to table: Numbers of deployed Service personnel for both nations are approximations.The numbers reflect CJEF exercises only; there will have been additional France-UK bilateral activity that is not accounted for in these numbers.Information on CJEF exercises prior to the achievement of Full Operating Capability in 2019-20 is limited.

Army

Derek Twigg: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many infantry there were in the army in (a) 2010, (b) 2015 and (c) 2022.

James Heappey: The below table shows the Army Regular Trade Trained Infantry personnel, as at 1 April 2010, 1 April 2015 and 1 April 2022. DateTotal1 April 202217,7521 April 201520,1341 April 201024,945 The decrease in infantry strength is relative to the overall strength of the British Army. Infantry personnel made up 25.4% of the Trade Trained Regular Army in April 2010, 25.3% in April 2015 and 24.2% in April 2022. Table notes: Table 1 figures are for the Trade Trained Regular Army only and therefore exclude Gurkhas, Full Time Reserve Service, Mobilised Reserves, Army Reserve and all other Reserves, but includes those personnel that have transferred from GURTAM to UKTAP. Officers of the paid rank of Colonel and above in the General Staff are excluded from these figures, regardless of late Arm/Service. Other Ranks in Senior Soldier Continuity Posts are excluded from these figures, regardless of late Arm/Service. Figures are for all Trade Trained Regular Army Infantry personnel, regardless of whether these personnel are serving at Regimental Duty. This may differ from published statistics which ask for Unit or Battalion information and only include personnel serving at Regimental Duty.

Kenya: Armed Forces

Kenny MacAskill: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, with reference to the motion of Laikipia County Assembly on military training in nature conservancies, whether it remains his Department's policy for British troops in Kenya to exercise at Lolldaiga Conservancy.

James Heappey: The Ministry of Defence deeply values our relationship with Kenya, which has long been the UK's defence partner of choice in East Africa. The British Army conducts critical work with the Kenya Defence Forces to build security and stability in the region. The British Army Training Unit Kenya (BATUK) continues to train at Lolldaiga Hills Ranch, a privately-owned commercial ranch which undertakes some conservation activities. The ranch leases land for use for military training for a limited number of days each year.

Military Bases: Sales

John Healey: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many sites from the Defence Estate have been disposed of as part of the Defence Estate Optimisation since 2016.

Alex Chalk: As part of the Defence Estate Optimisation Portfolio, the Department has disposed of 20 surplus military sites since 2016, releasing over 770 hectares of land for both commercial and residential development.

Defence: Finance

Mr Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, with reference to defence inflation estimates national statistics, which ceased publication in 2017, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of reviving this publication.

Alex Chalk: The publication of Defence Inflation Estimates as a National Statistic ceased in 2017 following a public consultation which determined that there was limited evidence of its value to external stakeholders. The Department continues to produce a Defence Inflation Report to inform internal budget planning but does not intend to revive the publication at this current time.

Question

Danny Kruger: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what assessment his Department has made of the effectiveness of Ukrainian defence against Russian aggression.

Mr Ben Wallace: Ukraine has inflicted heavy losses on Russian forces. We estimate that around 175,000 Russian military personnel have been injured or killed in the conflict. Despite Russian forces carrying out offensive operations across the front line in recent weeks, any Russian gains have been incremental and costly, and Ukraine’s defence has eroded the combat effectiveness of Russian forces.

Question

Dan Jarvis: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, when he plans to publish the update to the Integrated Review.

Mr Ben Wallace: The Integrated Review was published on 13 March 2023.

Military Bases: Sales

John Healey: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether his Department has undertaken internal audits of defence estate disposals.

Alex Chalk: Yes. Over the last three years, the Defence Internal Audit (DIA) team have internal conducted audits of the Defence Infrastructure Organisation's business including defence estate disposals. These audits range from our site closure process, and, more recently, an audit on resourcing and capability is currently underway.

Question

Ms Anum Qaisar: What steps his Department is taking to ensure that the armed forces are adequately equipped to meet future (a) security and (b) military threats.

Alex Chalk: Our Armed Forces are configured to deliver a full spectrum of capabilities from conventional armed forces to the nuclear deterrent.The Department is ensuring our Armed Forces have the equipment and capability they need to meet the threats of tomorrow, including through a £242 billion 10-year equipment plan.

Question

John Spellar: What steps he is taking to tackle supply chain constraints in defence procurement.

Alex Chalk: The Ministry of Defence takes the health and resilience of our supply chains seriously. The department has invested in a department-wide supply chain mapping programme, sharing intelligence and best practice on common critical supply chains and materials across Government and internationally.

Question

Gavin Newlands: What steps his Department is taking to help increase the contribution of the defence industry to societal resilience.

James Heappey: The Ministry of Defence is committed to safeguarding national resilience across the Defence enterprise, including the Armed Forces and industry. The past few years have seen Defence play a key role in supporting and enhancing societal resilience through the Military Aid to Civilian Authorities process. This activity expanded during the Covid-19 pandemic and was recently engaged in response to widespread industrial action.

Question

Elliot Colburn: What steps his Department is taking to support the international response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

Nicola Richards: What steps his Department is taking to support the international response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

James Heappey: The UK, our allies and partners are responding decisively to provide military and humanitarian assistance to Ukraine. The UK continues to be recognised as a leading nation providing support to Ukraine; training over ten thousand recruits, providing £2.4 billion of support including hundreds of thousands of rounds of artillery ammunition and leading the world on the gifting of vital capabilities such as MLRS and Challenger II main battle tanks.

Question

Mr Barry Sheerman: What steps is he taking to improve British defence capacity in the Asia-Pacific region.

James Heappey: We have increased our military presence in the Indo-Pacific, expanding our exercising and training to build capacity of UK and partner forces. We have deployed two Offshore Patrol Vessels and uplifted our Defence Network, whilst maintaining a permanent presence in Singapore, Brunei and the British Indian Ocean Territory. We have also signed a new treaty with Japan to enable increased access to the region.

Military Bases

John Healey: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether his Department has made an assessment of the value for money of the Defence Estate Optimisation Portfolio.

Alex Chalk: Value for money is scrutinised at each and every level of investment for individual projects and the overall Defence Estate Optimisation (DEO) Portfolio, to invest £5.1 billion in a better structured, modern and more sustainable estate that improves security and resilience, as well as support recruitment and retention to our Armed Forces.

Question

Rebecca Long Bailey: If he will bring forward proposals to allow veterans to apply for access to their biological monitoring tests conducted during their service.

Dr Andrew Murrison: Veterans or members of their family are already entitled to request information that may be held by the Ministry of Defence, including medical test results, through Subject Access Requests. Information is provided on request to individuals, or representatives acting on their behalf, under General Data Protection Regulation, Chapter 3, Article 15 – Right of access.

Question

Stephen Morgan: What assessment he has made of the adequacy of housing for armed forces personnel.

Dr Andrew Murrison: The Ministry of Defence (MOD) fully recognises that the provision of safe, good quality and well-maintained accommodation is essential to operational output, and providing such accommodation is one of the MOD’s top priorities. In the last seven years, the MOD has invested more than £936 million in Service Family Accommodation (SFA) improvements and currently just under 97% of MOD SFA meet or exceed the Government’s Decent Homes Standard. Only these properties are allocated to Service families. In addition, they meet statutory and mandatory housing safety requirements.

Imjin Barracks

John Healey: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what the (a) size in hectares and (b) Housing Unit Potential is of Imjin Barracks.

Alex Chalk: Imjin Barracks is 96.9 hectares in size. No assessment has been made of the Housing Unit Potential of the site, as it has not been identified for disposal.

Armed Forces: Housing

John Healey: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, when he plans for the Single Living Accommodation Management Information System to be operational.

Alex Chalk: The Single Living Accommodation Management Information System is expected to reach full operational capability in Autumn 2023.

Shipbuilding

Dr Kieran Mullan: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what steps his Department is taking to support British shipbuilding.

Alex Chalk: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave to him on 14 December 2022 to Question 104345.Shipbuilding (docx, 23.7KB)

Puma Helicopters

Mr Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what the end-of-service date is for his Department's Puma helicopters.

Alex Chalk: March 2025 is the planned Out of Service date for Puma helicopters.

Military Aircraft: Helicopters

Mr Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what recent progress his Department has made on the New Medium Helicopter contest.

Alex Chalk: Credible suppliers were informed on 24 February 2023 that the second half of the competition will be launched later this year.

Service Complaints Ombudsman

John Healey: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many referrals have been made by the Service Complaints Ombudsman to the Central Admissibility Team about service complaints in each year since 2016.

John Healey: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many applications to the Service Complaints Ombudsman have been made by Armed Forces personnel for (a) a review and (b) an investigation of their service complaint in each year since 2016.

John Healey: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many reviews of decisions made in the service complaints system were made by the Service Complaints Ombudsman in each year since 2016.

John Healey: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many investigations into (a) undue delay, (b) maladministration and (c) substance and merits of service complaints the Service Complaints Ombudsman conducted in each year since 2016.

Dr Andrew Murrison: There were 138 referrals made by the Service Complaints Ombudsman for the Armed Forces (SCOAF) in 2022 to Central Admissibility Teams. Referrals only began to be made to Central Admissibility Teams after their creation on 15 June 2022. Prior to this date, all referrals were made to specified officers, via the single Service secretariats. Details of such referrals by SCOAF (via single Service secretariats) to specified officers in the years 2016-2021 can be found in Table 1.2 of the Annual Statistical Tables, SCOAF Annual Report 2021:https://www.scoaf.org.uk/sites/default/files/2022-05/scoaf_annual_report_2021_-_statistical_tables_scoaf_operations.xlsx In answer to your other questions, various statistical reference tables about the SCOAF’s operations, including numbers of applications to the SCOAF to review and investigate Service Complaints, and investigations completed, can be found in Tables 1.14c, 1.14d, 1.14e and 1.4 of the Annual Statistical Tables, SCOAF Annual Report 2021:https://www.scoaf.org.uk/sites/default/files/2022-05/scoaf_annual_report_2021_-_statistical_tables_scoaf_operations.xlsx Annual Statistical Tables for 2022 will be made available on the SCOAF website no later than 31 March 2023. These are separate from the SCOAF Annual Report.

Service Complaints Ombudsman

John Healey: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many times the Service Complaints Ombudsman has given evidence to parliamentary select committees in each year since 2016.

Dr Andrew Murrison: The Service Complaints Ombudsman for the Armed Forces gave evidence to the House of Commons Defence Committee on 26 February 2019 and 13 October 2020.

Armed Forces

Mr Virendra Sharma: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the Answer of 7 March 2023 to Question 156940 on Armed Forces, if his Department will send the hon. Member for Ealing, Southall a copy of JSP 822.

Dr Andrew Murrison: Joint Service Publication (JSP) 822 is available on the gov.uk website and can be found at the following link: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/jsp-822-governance-and-management-of-defence-individual-training-education-and-skills

Department for Energy Security and Net Zero

Alternative Fuel Payments

David Duguid: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what steps his department is taking to ensure that Alternative Fuel Payments are reaching customers and are not held back by electricity companies.

Amanda Solloway: The former Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy published a Direction signed by the then Minister of State for Energy and Climate which legally requires that domestic electricity suppliers provide an Alternative Fuel Payment to all their eligible customers, and electricity suppliers had until the end of February to do this.

North Sea Oil: Shetland

Dan Carden: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what assessment he has made of the impact of the approval of the Rosebank oil field on wholesale electricity prices.

Graham Stuart: The Department has made no assessment of the impact of the Rosebank field on wholesale energy prices.

Alternative Fuel Payments

Dave Doogan: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, if he will make an estimate of the number and proportion of households who will not receive funding through the Alternative Fuels Payment Alternative Fund because they did not retain receipts but would otherwise have been eligible.

Amanda Solloway: No estimate has been made. The Government understands that alternative fuel users are routinely provided with suitable documentation through their fuel provider and, where necessary, fuel suppliers have indicated that they can reissue receipts. The receipts must show a date of purchase between September 2022 and the end of the application window on 31 May 2023.

Alternative Fuel Payments

Dave Doogan: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, for what reason the guidance stating that receipts and delivery notes were a requirement in support of applications for the Alternative Fuels Payment scheme was not publicly available information prior to that scheme opening.

Amanda Solloway: The Government has moved at pace to develop and deliver a complex scheme, meaning it was not possible to publish the application guidance prior to the launch of the scheme. In developing the scheme, the Government worked closely with stakeholders across the country on the requirement that applicants prove that they are eligible through demonstration of alternative fuel use, e.g. by receipt/delivery note and were assured that most alternative fuel users are routinely provided with suitable documentation through their fuel provider.

North Sea Oil: Shetland

Dan Carden: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, if he will make an assessment of the potential impact of developing the Rosebank oil field on the Government’s target of protecting at least 30 per cent of the ocean by 2030.

Graham Stuart: I refer the Hon. Member to the answer I gave to the Hon. Member for Norwich South of 1st November 2022 to Question 69714.

North Sea Oil: Shetland

Dan Carden: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, if he will make an assessment of the potential impact of approving the Rosebank oil field on the Government's (a) net zero targets and (b) international climate obligations.

Graham Stuart: I refer the Hon. Member to the answer I gave the Hon. Member for Norwich South on 1st November 2022 to Question 69713.

North Sea Oil: Shetland

Dan Carden: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, if he will take steps with Cabinet colleagues to prevent the development of the Rosebank oil field.

Graham Stuart: Development proposals for oil fields, such as Rosebank, are a matter for the regulators the North Sea Transition Authority and the Offshore Petroleum Regulator for Environment and Decommissioning (OPRED) - following their standard regulatory processes. OPRED’s decision on the Rosebank application will be published in due course.The UK still needs oil and gas for heating, cooking, transport, to power its industries, and as a key part of Great Britain’s electricity generation during the energy transition. The production of natural gas from the UK Continental Shelf creates less than half as much greenhouse gas as imported liquefied natural gas.

Households: Insulation

Dan Jarvis: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what plans his Department has to work with Mayoral Combined Authorities on household insulation and retro-fitting schemes

Graham Stuart: The Government works with Combined Authorities as part of the Sustainable Warmth competition. Up to £1.5 billion will be available to local authorities, including Combined Authorities, through the Social Housing Decarbonisation Fund and Home Upgrade Grant schemes, which will be delivered from April 2023 to March 2025. The schemes provide grants for energy efficiency measures and low carbon heating to low-income households, living in the worst performing, private and social homes in England with an Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) rating of band C-G. Successful local authorities will be announced before April 2023.

Energy: Meters

Colleen Fletcher: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, if he will make an estimate of the number of households with smart meters in (a) Coventry North East constituency, (b) Coventry, (c) the West Midlands and (d) England that do not have a functioning in-home visual display unit.

Amanda Solloway: When energy suppliers install smart meters in a household, they are required to offer the customer an In-Home Display (IHD). They are also obligated to provide support for IHDs, including a repair or replacement where necessary, within the first year of installation. The Government does not hold data on the number of households experiencing problems with IHDs. However, research shows the majority of smart metered consumers use IHDs as their primary method of monitoring energy use, and that this feedback is supporting consumers in managing their usage and reducing consumption. Ofgem is responsible for regulating suppliers against their licence obligations.

Energy: Meters

Colleen Fletcher: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, if she will make an estimate of the number of households with smart meters in (a) Coventry North East constituency, (b) Coventry, (c) the West Midlands and (d) England that are required to provide manual meter readings of their energy usage to their supplier; and what steps the Data Communications Company is taking to resolve smart metering communication issues.

Colleen Fletcher: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, if he will make an estimate of the number of households in (a) Coventry North East constituency, (b) Coventry, (c) the West Midlands and (d) England that cannot use smart meters due to connectivity.

Colleen Fletcher: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, if he will make an estimate of the number of households that have smart meters that are not functioning properly due to communications infrastructure.

Amanda Solloway: The Government collects data on the number of smart meters in traditional mode, i.e. meters temporarily unable to automatically send meter readings to the energy supplier, at Great Britain level only.[1] The Data Communications Company (DCC), which operates the smart meter national communications infrastructure, is obligated under its licence to provide coverage to at least 99.25% of premises across Great Britain. In addition, energy suppliers are obligated to take all reasonable steps to ensure their customers’ smart meters are functional. The energy regulator Ofgem is responsible for regulating energy suppliers and the DCC against their licence obligations.

Warm Home Discount Scheme

Carol Monaghan: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, whether he has made an assessment of the potential merits of extending the eligibility criteria for the Warm Home Discount Scheme to include women on maternity leave who do not qualify for means-tested benefits.

Amanda Solloway: The Warm Home Discount prioritises people who are most at risk of being in fuel poverty. Fuel poverty is a combination of low incomes and high energy costs, so the scheme is targeted at those on means tested benefits whose homes are expensive to heat. Women on maternity leave do not automatically fall into that category.

Electrical Safety

Sarah Olney: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, if he will hold discussions with energy suppliers on the potential merits of extending the free gas safety checks being given to customer on their Priority Services Registers to include electrical safety checks.

Amanda Solloway: There are no plans to hold discussions with energy suppliers on this matter. The independent regulator, Ofgem, requires licenced energy suppliers to provide and maintain a Priority Services Register for vulnerable customers with additional, non-financial needs. The services that suppliers are required to offer to customers on a Priority Services Register are a matter for Ofgem.

Small Modular Reactors: Procurement

Daniel Kawczynski: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, if he will discuss with Rolls Royce SMR Ltd his plan for procurement of small modular reactors.

Andrew Bowie: The Government has awarded up to £210m from the Advanced Nuclear Fund to Rolls Royce SMR Ltd to support the development of their Small Modular Reactor design. As outlined in the British Energy Security Strategy, the Government intends to initiate a selection process in 2023, with the intention that we will enter negotiations with the most credible projects to enable a potential Government award of support as soon as possible.

Members: Correspondence

Gerald Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, when he plans to issue a substantive written response to the correspondence of 23 January 2023 from the hon. Member for Merthyr Tydfil and Rhymney, regarding changes to the Warm Home Discount.

Amanda Solloway: I wrote to the hon. Member on 9th March regarding changes to the Warm Home Discount scheme.

Standing Charges: Low Incomes

Mary Kelly Foy: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of changes in the level of standing charges on (a) low income and (b) other vulnerable households.

Amanda Solloway: How suppliers choose to set the standing charge and unit rate is a commercial decision. However, the energy price cap sets a limit on unit rates and standing charges, ensuring that millions of households pay a fair price for their energy. In August 2022, Ofgem reviewed the components of the standing charge to see if they could be reduced. Ofgem concluded that, if the methodology for the standing charge were to change, there are numerous high consuming, vulnerable users, such as disabled users, who would pay more. Therefore, retaining the current methodology protects vulnerable users with greater energy needs.

Home Office

Asylum: Afghanistan

Tim Farron: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many asylum applications are awaiting decision by her Department from Afghan nationals whose spouse has already been granted asylum in the UK; and if she will provide a breakdown of locations from which applications have been made.

Robert Jenrick: The Home Office publishes data on asylum in the ‘Immigration System Statistics Quarterly Release’. Data on asylum applications awaiting a decision by nationality can be found in table Asy_D03 of the ‘asylum and resettlement detailed datasets’. Information on how to use the datasets can be found in the ‘Notes’ page of the workbooks. Please note the data show a snapshot as at the last day of each quarter, rather than the number of asylum applications awaiting a decision over the entire quarter. The latest data relates to as at 31 December 2022. Data as at 31 March 2023 will be published on 25 May 2023. Information on future Home Office statistical release dates can be found in the ‘Research and statistics calendar’.This data is not available broken down by outcomes received by family members.Official statistics published by the Home Office are kept under review in line with the code of practice for statistics, taking into account a number of factors including user needs, as well as quality and availability of data.

Vetting

Stephen Kinnock: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what the average waiting time was for Disclosure and Barring Service checks in each year since 2020.

Miss Sarah Dines: The average waiting time for Disclosure and Barring Service checks since 2020 is:Calendar YearBasic DBS CheckStandard DBS CheckEnhanced DBS Check20201.5 days2.6 days9.2 days20211.6 days3 days8.1 days20221.1 days1.6 days10.2 days

Female Genital Mutilation

Gill Furniss: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether the Forced Marriage Unit plans to take steps to publish data on the number of cases of female genital mutilation it is supporting.

Miss Sarah Dines: The Government’s Forced Marriage Unit (FMU) supports British nationals (including dual nationals) overseas who are at risk of or who have undergone female genital mutilation (FGM).The FMU’s published annual statistics, which provide information on the numbers of victims and potential victims (generally of forced marriage) for whom it has provided support, have since 2020 included figures on the numbers of victims and potential victims of FGM for whom support has been provided. The figures for 2021 showed that, out of the 337 victims and potential victims for whom support was provided, three were victims or potential victims of both forced marriage and FGM, and 18 were victims or potential victims solely of FGM. The statistics can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/forced-marriage-unit-statistics. Statistics for 2022 will be published in the coming months.

Economic Crime

Stephen McPartland: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what percentage of all recorded crime was classed as an economic crime in each of the last three years.

Stephen McPartland: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what estimate her Department has made of the percentage of police resources devoted to tackling economic crime in each of the last three years.

Tom Tugendhat: Fraud, money laundering and bribery related offences, typically considered to be economic crime, made up 16% of all police recorded crime in the year to September 2022.

Illegal Migration Bill: Impact Assessments

Stephen Kinnock: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, when she plans to publish the impact assessments for the Illegal Migration Bill.

Robert Jenrick: We will publish an equality impact assessment and economic impact assessment in respect of the Illegal Migration Bill in due course.

Retail Trade: Nitrous Oxide

Bob Stewart: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will make it her policy to introduce a requirement for retailers to hold a licence to sell nitrous oxide.

Chris Philp: Nitrous oxide is subject to the Psychoactive Substances Act 2016 which makes it an offence to supply, offer to supply, possess with intent to supply, produce, import or export nitrous oxide knowingly or recklessly for its psychoactive effect. Possession of nitrous oxide is lawful, except in custodial settings, and a Home Office controlled drugs licence is not required by those who wish to use it for legitimate medical, research, catering or industrial purposes.The Government are concerned about the misuse of nitrous oxide, its recognised health harms and the potential impact on communities. That is why I wrote to the Advisory Council for the Misuse of Drugs (ACMD) on 7 February asking them to expedite their updated harms assessment on nitrous oxide following the Government’s initial request to the ACMD in September 2021.The ACMD published their report on nitrous oxide on the 6 March, setting out the evidence as it currently stands and making a number of recommendations for action. The Government will consider the ACMD advice carefully along with any other available evidence, as appropriate, before deciding how to proceed.

Illegal Migration Bill: Impact Assessments

Anne McLaughlin: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether she plans to publish an (a) equality and (b) economic impact assessment of the Illegal Migration Bill.

Robert Jenrick: We will publish an equality impact assessment and economic impact assessment in respect of the Illegal Migration Bill in due course.

Waste: Crime

Mr Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 24 February 2023 to Question 143701 on Waste: Crime, whether her Department has had recent discussions with relevant stakeholders on updating the Serious and Organised Crime Strategy to include waste crime.

Tom Tugendhat: My department regularly engages with a range of stakeholders on matters relating to serious and organised crime.

Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps

Ben Lake: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what recent discussions she has had with (a) the Cabinet colleagues and (b) her global counterparts on the potential merits of proscribing the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps as a terrorist organisation; and if she will take steps to  undertake a review with her global counterparts of that potential proscription.

Tom Tugendhat: Whilst we keep the list of proscribed organisations under review, it is Government policy not to comment on whether a group is under consideration for proscription.To proscribe an organisation, the Home Secretary must have a reasonable belief that it is concerned in terrorism. This means the organisation participates or commits; prepares for; promotes, encourages or unlawfully glorifies; or is in some way otherwise concerned in terrorism. As well as considering whether the statutory test for proscription has been satisfied, the Home Secretary’s decision to proscribe must be necessary and proportionate, having taken into account all relevant factors.The UK Government has long been clear about its concerns over the continued destabilising activity of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC). The UK is committed to working with the international community to ensure Iran is held to account.There UK has close to 300 sanctions in place against Iran, including on the IRGC in its entirety. We will continue to use all tools at our disposal to protect the UK and our interests from any Iran-linked threats.

Economic Crime

Stephen McPartland: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what support her Department is providing to small businesses and local health services to protect them from economic crime.

Tom Tugendhat: We have strengthened our fight against economic crime through the publication of the landmark Economic Crime Plan in July 2019, which brought together government, law enforcement and the private sector in cooperation to deliver a whole system response to economic crime.The total Spending Review 2021 settlement and the Economic Crime Levy represent an overall package of circa £400 million to tackle economic crime over the next three years, including fraud. This is in addition to the funding that the Home Office commits each year to the National Economic Crime Centre in the NCA, and police forces.Tackling fraud requires a unified and co-ordinated response from government, law enforcement and the private sector to better protect the public and businesses of all sizes, reduce the impact on victims, and increase the disruption and prosecution of fraudsters. This is why the Home Office will shortly be publishing a new strategy to address the threat of fraud.

Asylum: Children

Dan Carden: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, for what reasons her Department will not establish an independent inquiry into the disappearance of children from accommodation managed by her Department.

Robert Jenrick: All cases of missing children remain open, with police forces completing investigations and following any new evidence.When any young person goes missing the 'missing persons protocol' is followed and led by our directly engaged social workers. A multi-agency, missing persons protocol is mobilised involving the police and the local authority, who have a shared statutory responsibility to safeguard all children, including missing migrant children, in order to establish their whereabouts and to ensure that they are safe.When any looked after child who goes missing from a care setting, including the UASC hotels, the MARS (Missing After Reasonable Steps) protocol is followed.

Asylum: Housing

Kate Osamor: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, which teams in her Department are notified when providers of accommodation for asylum seekers report violent incidents.

Robert Jenrick: Accommodation providers report incidents to the Asylum Accommodation & Support Contracts (AASC) High Profile Notification (HPN) team in Customer Services who then provide information and status updates internally, including to senior officials.

Undocumented Migrants: English Channel

Stuart C McDonald: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many reports were made through the Duty to Notify process for those people who arrived in the UK via small boats crossings between 1 January 2022 and 10 February 2023; and if he provide a breakdown by (a) nationality, (b) gender, (c) whether the person reported on was an adult or a child and (d) the First Responder agency making the referral.

Robert Jenrick: It is not possible to match Duty to Notify (DtN) data to individuals who have arrived in the UK via small boats crossings; as the individual has not given their consent to enter the National Referral Mechanism DtNs are often anonymised, and DtN data is not entered onto immigration databases.

Visas: Foreign Investment in UK

Dame Margaret Hodge: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to the Written Statement of 12 January 2023 on The Tier 1 (Investor) route: Review of operation between 30 June 2008 and 6 April 2015, HCWS492, whether any Tier 1 (investor) route visas were revoked following that review.

Dame Margaret Hodge: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to the Written Statement of 12 January 2023 on The Tier 1 (Investor) route: Review of operation between 30 June 2008 and 6 April 2015, HCWS492, how many people were found to be at risk of (a) corruption and (b) organised crime; and from which countries those people came.

Dame Margaret Hodge: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what information her Department holds on the number of individuals that had The Tier 1 (Investor) route Review of operation between 30 June 2008 and 6 April 2015, who were granted (a) an Entry Clearance application, (b) a Leave to Remain application and (c) Indefinite Leave to remain (settlement) for the entire duration of that scheme.

Dame Margaret Hodge: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to the Written Statement of 12 January 2023 on The Tier 1 (Investor) route: Review of operation between 30 June 2008 and 6 April 2015, HCWS492, how many people were found to have been refused (a) entry clearance applications, (b) leave to remain applications and (c) indefinite leave to remain (settlement) for the duration of the scheme.

Dame Margaret Hodge: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps her Department is taking in relation to high-risk people following the  review entitled the Tier 1 (Investor) route: Review of operation between 30 June 2008 and 6 April 2015.

Robert Jenrick: The review considered 6312 applicants and their adult dependants, representing the total cohort of adult usership of the programme between 30 June 2008 and 06 April 2015. The numbers of individuals granted Entry Clearance, Leave To Remain and Indefinite Leave To Remain are published within the migration statistics and can be found here: Migration statistics - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk) We have published the key findings from the review. However, to protect sensitivities within the work of our independent operational partners at their request, we will not make any further comment on action taken as a result of the review.

Undocumented Migrants: English Channel

Justin Madders: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether her Department has taken steps to investigate the (a) location and (b) identity of the vendors of inflatable boats used for carrying refugees across the English channel.

Robert Jenrick: These crossings remain dangerous, illegal and unnecessary. The Government is determined to stop them, and that is the aim of the new Illegal Migration Bill.While it would be inappropriate to detail the work being done against those criminal elements, our joint work with France has seen at least 59 Organised Crime Groups connected to these crossings dismantled, and over 500 arrests made, since the foundation of the Joint Intelligence Cell in July 2020.

Migrant Workers: Clothing

John McNally: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of extending eligibility for the global talent visa to include (a) designers, (b) fashion photographers, (c) stylists, (d) fashion journalists and (e) other professionals in the fashion industry.

Robert Jenrick: The Global Talent visa route utilises the expertise of six endorsing bodies to set criteria for applicants looking to apply as a leading talent or someone with the potential to be a leading talent in their respective fields.On behalf of Arts Council England, the endorsing body for arts and culture, the British Fashion Council consider applications from individuals looking to be endorsed within the field of fashion design. Any expansion of the criteria to cover a wider range of roles within the fashion industry would be requested via our endorsing bodies – as the experts in their field – to consider and escalate to the Home Office if appropriate.We continue to work closely with the endorsing bodies to ensure that the route is working for their sectors and that the UK is attracting and retaining highly talented individuals in science, research, digital technology and arts and culture.There are a range of other visa routes open to applicants, that cater for professions within the fashion design industry.

Asylum

Alex Sobel: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether her Department issues guidance on legal routes to claim asylum in the UK.

Robert Jenrick: Whilst we sympathise with people in many difficult situations around the world, we are not bound to consider asylum claims fromoverseas. Those who need international protection should claim asylum in the first safe country they reach – that is the fastest route to safety. Our resettlement schemes operate differently to asylum. We have provided safe and legal routes for tens of thousands of people to start new lives in the UK. The UK welcomes people at risk through the UK Resettlement Scheme (UKRS), Mandate Resettlement Scheme, Community Sponsorship and the Afghan Citizens’ Resettlement Scheme and we have routes for Hong Kongers and Ukrainians via other safe and legal routes. This commitment, alongside a fair and firm asylum system, will ensure we continue to offer safe and legal routes to the UK for those in need of protection. Our focus will remain on helping individuals directly from regions of conflict and instability. Further information on our resettlement schemes is available on GOV.UK at: www.gov.uk/government/publications/resettlement-policy-statement.

Illegal Migration Bill: Impact Assessments

Stuart C McDonald: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether she will publish an (a) equality and (b) economic impact assessment of the proposed illegal migration bill prior to the second reading of that bill.

Robert Jenrick: We will publish an equality impact assessment and economic impact assessment in respect of the Illegal Migration Bill in due course.

Home Office: Correspondence

Dan Carden: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what the target response time is for (a) the Urgent Queries inbox and (b) the MP correspondence inbox.

Robert Jenrick: There is no set service standard for queries sent to this inbox, the Department is currently responding to urgent queries within 24 hours.The Department works to a target of responding to 95% of standard written correspondence within 20 working days. It is currently replying within this service standard.

Visas: Families

Tim Farron: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what is the (a) earliest and (b) latest date for deciding the application for family reunion made in the United Arab Emirates on 1 September 2022, reference GWFO66746607.

Robert Jenrick: Information regarding processing times for family reunion applications is not routinely published and could only be obtained at disproportionate cost. We are working outside the 60 working day service standard with the majority of applications being considered at over double the service standard timescale.We are committed to improving and speeding up processing times for family reunion applications and acknowledge the need to dedicate more resource to support this safe and legal route as well as reviewing processes to streamline decision making to provide a better service to our customers.In the year ending September 2022, 4,786 family reunion visas were issued to partners and children of those granted asylum or humanitarian protection, around a third (36%) fewer than the number in 2019, the year prior to the pandemic. Of these, 2,575 (54%) were children (aged under 18).We will prioritise applications where there is a particularly urgent or compelling reason to do so.

Members: Correspondence

Feryal Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, when she plans to respond to the letter of 23 February from the hon. Member for Enfield North on visa arrangements following the earthquake in Turkey and Syria.

Robert Jenrick: The Government recognises the importance of the effective and timely handling of correspondence, and follows the Cabinet Office’s guidance titled Guide to Handling Correspondence for Government Departments and Agencies updated in July 2021, which is available at: Guide to Handling Correspondence - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk).The suggested standard in the guidance for handling ministerial and public correspondence is that responses should not exceed 20 working days from their receipt by the respective department.The Home Office is considering the Hon. Member’s correspondence of 23 February and, in accordance with the Cabinet Office guidance, a response will be sent in due course.

Members: Correspondence

Feryal Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, when the Minister for Immigration plans to respond to the letter from the hon. Member for Enfield North of 10 February 2023 on visa routes following the earthquake in Turkey and Syria.

Robert Jenrick: A reply will be provided as soon as possible.

Undocumented Migrants: English Channel

Patrick Grady: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will provide the details of the last three (a) dates when and (b) locations where she last met with (i) individuals who arrived in the UK on small boats and (ii) charitable or non-governmental organisations who provide support services to asylum seekers.

Robert Jenrick: All meetings held by the Home Secretary in her Ministerial capacity are routinely released in quarterly Departmental transparency returns. The latest transparency returns can be found here: Home Office: ministerial gifts, hospitality, travel and meetings - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk).

Dublin Regulations

Emma Hardy: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 20 September 2022 to Question 47636 on Dublin Regulations, how many and what proportion of asylum claims have (a) been declared inadmissible and (b) resulted in the return of the applicant on the ground of inadmissibility in each of the last three years.

Robert Jenrick: The Home Office publishes data on asylum and resettlement in the ‘Immigration System Statistics Quarterly Release’. Data on cases considered under inadmissibility rules can be found in table Asy_09a of the ‘asylum and resettlement summary tables’. The latest data covers 1 January 2021 to 30 September 2022.Information on future Home Office statistical release dates can be found in the ‘Research and statistics calendar’.

Asylum: Children

Mr Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 1 March 2023 to Question 156231, what steps her Department is taking to locate the remaining missing asylum seekers under the age of 18 who were staying in hotels procured by her Department.

Robert Jenrick: We have safeguarding procedures in place to ensure all unaccompanied asylum-seeking children in hotels are as safe and supported as possible as we seek urgent placements with a local authority.Young people are supported by team leaders and support workers who are on site 24 hours a day. Further care is provided in hotels by teams of social workers and nurses.Once in a hotel where UASC are accommodated, there are various measures in place to ensure that the risk of a child going missing is minimised. Records are kept and monitored of children leaving and returning to the hotel. Support workers will accompany children off site on activities and social excursions, or where specific vulnerabilities are identified. The Home Office has no power to hold children in hotels or any temporary accommodation if they wish to leave.If a young person goes missing from a care setting, including a UASC hotel, the MARS (Missing After Reasonable Steps) protocol is followed. A multi-agency, missing persons meeting is chaired by the local authority to establish the young person's whereabouts and to ensure that they are safe.When used correctly, similar protocols within police forces have safely reduced the number of missing episodes from placements by 36%.

Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

Tomatoes: Imports

Dr Rosena Allin-Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if she will make an estimate of the number of tomatoes that were imported in February (a) 2022 and (b) 2023.

Mark Spencer: Provisional HMRC Overseas Trade Data shows the UK imported 32,300 tonnes of fresh tomatoes in February 2022. Data for February 2023 is not yet available.

Cucumbers: Imports

Dr Rosena Allin-Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if she will make an estimate of the number of cucumbers that were imported in February (a) 2022 and (b) 2023.

Mark Spencer: Provisional HMRC Overseas Trade Data shows the UK imported 16,600 tonnes of cucumbers in February 2022. Data for February 2023 is not yet available.

Food: Production

Ian Byrne: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps he is taking to support domestic food producers, in the context of increases in the cost of agricultural production.

Mark Spencer: We recognise that farmers and domestic food producers are facing global pressures due to the illegal war in Ukraine and a historic outbreak of avian influenza across Europe. The Government has announced a series of measures to support farmers with these pressures.  A new energy scheme (the Energy Bill Discount Scheme) for businesses, charities, and the public sector was confirmed on the 9th January this year, ahead of the current scheme (Energy Bill Relief Scheme) ending in March. The new scheme will mean all eligible UK businesses and other non-domestic energy users will receive a discount on high energy bills until 31 March 2024.  On Friday 16 December last year, HM Government announced that an allocation of 45,000 visas will be made available in 2023 to businesses in the horticulture sector, to recruit foreign workers for up to six months to work in both the edible and ornamental sectors. This is an uplift of 15,000 visas compared to the allocation at the start of 2022.  Direct Payments to Farmers in England will be made in two instalments each year for the remainder of the agricultural transition period, to support farmers with their cashflow. We have also provided increased payment rates under Countryside Stewardship (CS) from an average increase of 10% for revenue payment rates – covering ongoing activity such as habitat management – and an average increase of 48% for capital payment rates – covering one-off projects such as hedgerow creation.  To help farmers reduce their reliance on fertilisers, which has recently increased in price, the government has removed tariffs on US maize imports. We continue to collaborate with industry, across government and devolved administrations on fertiliser price transparency and monitoring of the security and stability of fertiliser and other supply chains.This government has improved the Avian Flu compensation scheme for farmers to help farmers through the worst global outbreak in many years and eased marketing rules to give certainty over business planning.Defra works with industry bodies across the horticulture sectors, including with the Edible Horticulture Roundtable Group (EHRG), as well as with other key stakeholders, such as the British Growers Association (BGA) and the National Farmers Union (NFU) to monitor and assess the current market situation for fruit and vegetable growers. We also work with colleagues in the Devolved Administrations at the UK Agricultural Market Monitoring Group (UK AMMG).Looking forward, this government has committed to spend approximately £600 million on grants and other support for farmers to invest in productivity, animal health and welfare, innovation over three years.

Public Sector: Food

Daniel Zeichner: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 20 February 2023 to Question 148613 on Public Sector: Food, whether her predecessors had discussions with food and drink wholesalers on the creation of a single buyer framework for public sector food in the period between 2019 and September 2022.

Mark Spencer: Defra has engaged with Crown Commercial Services during the development of their framework. This includes ensuring the updated Government Buying Standards for Food and Catering (GBSF), once published, are incorporated into the framework. The GBSF has been widely consulted on by the Government, including a public consultation last summer.

Pollution: River Tees

Andy McDonald: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, with reference to the report by the Chief Executive of the South Tees Development Corporation, published on 16 December 2021, whether the (a) Marine Management Organisation and (b) Environment Agency have undertaken investigations into the land-based excavations set out in paragraph 13 of that report; and whether those organisations have provided advice on the (i) potential toxicity of the materials excavated, (ii) remediation and destination of those materials and (iii) steps to help tackle any concerns.

Trudy Harrison: The work referenced in the report by the Chief Executive of the South Tees Development Corporation, published on 16 December 2021, relates to the redevelopment of South Bank Quay. This work was set out and approved as part of a local authority planning permission, which would have specifically detailed the site remediation plans within a remediation strategy. The Environment Agency did not input into this planning process. This is because, using a risk based approach, this planning application was screened out of the Environment Agency’s Planning Screening Tool. Under the Planning Regime, it is the responsibility of the Local Planning Authority to ensure that issues such as land contamination and risks to controlled waters are addressed appropriately by the developer. This includes ensuring that remediation activities if required are undertaken by the developer and that there are no remaining unacceptable risks posed to the environment as part of the proposed development.

Shellfish: River Tees

Andy McDonald: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, with reference to the report by the Chief Executive of the South Tees Development Corporation, published on 16 December 2021, whether she has had recent discussions with the Crustacean Mortality Expert Panel on the land-based excavations set out in paragraph 13 of that report.

Mark Spencer: The Crustacean Mortality Expert Panel (CMEP) considered land-based sources of toxins in their independent report and their conclusions reflect this consideration. The CMEP has been stood down, but the Chief Scientific Adviser, Professor Gideon Henderson, is now consulting with relevant experts who served on the CMEP about the specifics detailed in the South Tees Development Corporation report, to check these specifics do not alter the conclusions of the report.

Pollution: River Tees

Andy McDonald: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, with reference to paragraph 13 of the report by the Chief Executive of the South Tees Development Corporation, published on 16 December 2021, if she will make an assessment of the potential impact of the the excavations of quayside at South Bank Quay Phase One on levels of contamination in the River Tees in the period between 18 August 2021 and 16 December 2021.

Rebecca Pow: The work referenced in the report by the Chief Executive of the South Tees Devel-opment Corporation, published on 16 December 2021, relates to the redevelopment of South Bank Quay. This work was set out and approved as part of a local authority planning permission, which would have specifically detailed the site remediation plans within a remediation strategy. The Environment Agency did not input into this planning process. Under the Planning Regime, it is the responsibility of the Local Planning Au-thority to ensure that issues such as land contamination and risks to controlled waters are addressed appropriately by the developer. This includes ensuring that remediation activities if required are undertaken by the developer and that there are no remaining unacceptable risks posed to the environment as part of the proposed development.

Waste: Crime

Mr Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps her Department is taking to help tackle waste crime.

Rebecca Pow: The Government is committed to tackling waste crime and we are preparing significant reforms to continue to increase the pressure on illegal waste operators. We recently published our Government response to reform of the waste exemptions regime with the intention of closing loopholes and preventing exemptions from being misused to permit risky and illegal activity. Our planned electronic waste tracking reforms will make it harder than ever to mis-identify waste or dispose of it inappropriately. Planned changes to the Carriers, Brokers and Dealers licensing regime will modernise licensing and make it harder still for rogue operators to escape detection. These will come in addition to measures in the Environment Act 2021 which gives agencies stronger powers of entry and access to evidence in prosecuting waste crime as well as providing the Environment Agency with the ability to recover costs of investigation, intervention and enforcement at illegal or non-compliant waste sites.The Government also launched the Joint Unit for Waste Crime (JUWC) in 2020. It brings together the Environment Agency, HM Revenue & Customs, the National Crime Agency, the police, waste regulators from across the UK and other operational partners to share intelligence and tasking to disrupt and prevent serious organised waste crime. In the three years since the JUWC launched it has worked with 102 partner organisations and engaged in 175 multi-agency days of action, which have resulted in 51 associated arrests by other agencies.

Clean Air Zones: Tyne and Wear

Seema Malhotra: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how much funding she has provided to Tyneside's scrappage scheme for its clean air zone.

Rebecca Pow: The Government has not funded scrappage schemes as part of the Clean Air Fund programme for Tyneside.

Poultry: Animal Housing

Mr Virendra Sharma: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether she has made an assessment of the implications for her policies of Denmark’s recent announcement of a ban on the use of cages for laying hens.

Mark Spencer: The Government takes a keen interest in animal welfare developments in all other countries. We are committed to exploring the phasing out of cages for laying hens, supporting the industry to do so in a way which underpins UK food production and does not have unintended animal welfare or business impacts.

Sites of Special Scientific Interest

Dr Matthew Offord: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether her Department is taking steps to help improve the condition of sites of special scientific interest.

Trudy Harrison: The Environmental Improvement Plan set out a range of actions to recover our protected sites as a crucial part of delivering our legal targets to halt and reverse nature’s decline. This includes the 25 Year Environment Plan goal of restoring 75% of our one million hectares of terrestrial and freshwater protected sites to favourable condition by 2042. The Environmental Improvement Plan also set new interim targets that by 31 January 2028, all sites of special scientific interest (SSSIs) will have an up-to-date condition assessment; and 50% of SSSIs will have actions on track to achieve favourable condition.

Land: Maps

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, when she plans to set out her Department's timetable for the planned review of maps of open access land.

Trudy Harrison: Work has already begun to plan for the review of open access maps. We are seeking to undertake the review as soon as possible, although the precise timing will depend on the availability of an appropriate legislative vehicle. As such, it is not possible to provide specific timings at this stage.

Land: Access

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether her Department has had discussions with Natural England on options for expanding the freedom to roam to other land types, including woodland and inland waterside.

Trudy Harrison: The Countryside and Rights of Way Act 2000 provides for a right to roam across open access land, giving the public a right of access to most areas of mountain, moor, heath, down, registered common land and coastal margin. We have no plans to change this. England has an extensive network of footpaths and the public has the ‘right to roam’ over many areas of wild, open countryside.  While we want to increase access to nature, as per Goal 10 of the Environmental Improvement Plan 2023, we also recognise that to restore nature we need to ensure that people can enjoy its beauty responsibly. We also know it is important to recognise the needs of all those who live and work in the countryside.  A broader right to roam would risk trampling rather than protecting our habitats and species, and could also risk harming the livelihoods of our farmers.

Department for Education

Hearing Impairment: Teachers

Valerie Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what estimate she has made of the number of Teachers of the Deaf in (a) Walsall South and (b) England.

Claire Coutinho: Information on the number of qualified teachers of the deaf is not collected by the department.Information on the school workforce in England is collected as part of the annual School Workforce Census each November. Information is published in the ‘School Workforce in England’ statistical publication: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/school-workforce-in-england.

Hearing Impairment: Teachers

Valerie Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the adequacy of the number of Teachers of the Deaf in each year since 2010; and if she will make a statement.

Claire Coutinho: On 2 March 2023, the department published the Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) and Alternative Provision (AP) Improvement Plan in response to the Green Paper published in March 2022. This outlines the government’s mission for the SEND and AP system to fulfil children’s potential, including those with sensory impairment.As stated in the Plan, to support the supply of teachers with a mandatory qualification in sensory impairment (MQSI), the department has developed a new approval process to determine providers of MQSIs from the start of the 2023/24 academic year. The Institute for Apprenticeships and Technical Education (IfATE) are also developing an apprenticeship for teachers of sensory impairment. They are working with universities, local authorities and sector representatives, including the National Deaf Children’s Society, the Royal National Institute of Blind People and the British Association of Teachers of Deaf Children and Young People, to develop the qualification and expect it to be available from 2025. In addition to this, the department is exploring further options to maximise take up of MQSIs, with a view to improve the supply of teachers for children with sensory impairments.

Disability and Special Educational Needs

Andrew Lewer: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to the statement made in her Department's Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) and Alternative Provision (AP) Improvement Plan: Right Support, Right Place, Right Time report, published in March 2023, that the Government intends to replace the NASENCo with a mandatory leadership level SENCo NPQ for SENCos that do not hold the qualification, what steps she has taken to assess the strength of the business case for that policy; on what evidence her Department based its assessment of the likely impact of that change on the ability of SENCos to identify (a) children and young people's needs and (b) appropriate interventions in a timely way; and what assessment she has made of the potential impact of the planned change on the number of children and young people who will require (i) specialist support and (ii) Education and Health Care Plans.

Claire Coutinho: The introduction of a new leadership level SENCO National Professional Qualification (NPQ) to replace the existing mandatory qualification will play a key role in achieving the ambitions of the Special Educational Needs and Disability (SEND) and Alternative Provision (AP) Improvement Plan, by ensuring that special educational needs coordinators (SENCOs) consistently receive high-quality, evidence-based training. Research conducted by University of Plymouth highlighted that, while there is value in SENCOs completing the National Award for SEN Coordination (NASENCO), there are certain weaknesses with the current qualification, including an overemphasis on theory and academic assignment writing.In the SEND and AP Green Paper, published in March 2022, the department consulted on the introduction of the SENCO NPQ to address these issues. There was general support for the proposal, with 48% (1,278) of respondents agreeing or strongly agreeing with this change and only 20% (529) disagreeing or strongly disagreeing.NPQs are designed to provide training for education professionals at all levels, using the best available evidence to transform their practice and deliver improved outcomes for children and young people. In the interim evaluation of the 2021 reformed NPQs, early feedback from participants was that the ultimate beneficiaries of the NPQs will be pupils, who they believe will receive higher-quality teaching that results in better outcomes for pupils.

Higher Education: India

Navendu Mishra: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what data her Department holds on the number of British universities which have twinned with Indian universities and academic institutions; and if her Department will provide details of which universities have twinned with which Indian institutions.

Robert Halfon: The department welcomes collaborative arrangements between UK and Indian academic institutions to progress commitments made in the 2030 Roadmap for UK-India relations, and in the International Education Strategy, which names India as a priority country. Further details are available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/international-education-strategy-supporting-recovery-and-growth.The department does not systematically collect data on institutional partnerships with India, although a number of institutional partnerships are being pursued and encouraged by the government and the UK’s International Education Champion, Sir Steve Smith.

Overseas Students: India

Navendu Mishra: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what information the Government holds on how many Indian nationals studied in UK universities in financial years (a) 2019-20 and (b) 2020-21.

Robert Halfon: The Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA) collects and publishes statistics on higher education (HE) at UK Higher Education Providers (HEPs). The latest statistics refer to the 2021/22 academic year.HESA’s Student Open Data includes a table reporting on the number of Non-UK HE enrolments broken down by HEP and country of domicile between the 2014/15 to 2021/22 academic years. The data is available at: https://www.hesa.ac.uk/data-and-analysis/students/table-28.

Apprentices

Emma Hardy: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to the report entitled The Recent Evolution of Apprenticeships, published by the Sutton Trust on 8 December 2022, what assessment she has made of consequences for her policies of the take-up of apprenticeships by (a) age and (b) socio-economic background of apprentices.

Emma Hardy: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to the Sutton Trust report entitled The Recent Evolution of Apprenticeships, published on 8 December, what steps she is taking to increase the uptake of higher and degree level apprenticeships by young people from more disadvantaged areas.

Robert Halfon: The table attached shows the take-up of apprenticeships by age and home deprivation level from 2017/18 to 2022/23.The department wants to see more young people from disadvantaged backgrounds accessing higher and degree level apprenticeships as they are crucial in driving social mobility by boosting skills and improving earnings and career opportunities.We are promoting apprenticeships to students of all backgrounds through our Apprenticeship Support & Knowledge programme. The department publishes the Higher and Degree apprenticeship vacancy listing twice a year, which will highlight over 350 vacancies across the country that are available for young people to apply for in 2023 and 2024. The link to the vacancy listing can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/higher-and-degree-apprenticeships.The department wants to ensure apprenticeships are accessible for young people and is working with UCAS on the expansion of their apprenticeships service. From this autumn, young people will see more personalised options on UCAS, including apprenticeships. From autumn 2024, students will be able to apply for apprenticeships alongside an undergraduate degree application. This will help put technical and vocational education on an equal footing with traditional academic routes.The department is also making up to £8 million available to higher education providers in the 2022/23 financial year to support them to grow their degree apprenticeship offers. We are also working with the Office for Students to improve access to and participation in higher and degree apprenticeships.The department knows that small to medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) are key in creating apprenticeship opportunities for those in disadvantaged areas and we have recently launched an SME pathfinder in four regions of the North of England to support employers to find and hire new apprentices at all levels.The department provides additional funding to employers and training providers to support them to take on young apprentices aged 16 to18, and apprentices aged 19 to 24 that have an education, health and care plan or have been in care. Apprentices starting in August under the age of 25 that have been in local authority care can also claim a bursary of £3,000.The department will continue to champion the Social Mobility Commission’s Apprenticeships Toolkit for employers, and work with some of the country’s most influential employers through the Apprenticeship Diversity Champions Network to set out how employers can better recruit and support apprentices from disadvantaged backgrounds. table for take-up of apprenticeships  (xlsx, 31.8KB)

Schools: Bus Services

Richard Foord: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to help support school bus services; and what steps she is taking with stakeholders to protect existing school bus routes from cutbacks.

Nick Gibb: ​​The Department’s school transport policy aims to ensure that no pupil is unable to attend school because of a lack of transport. Local Authorities must arrange free travel to school for pupils aged 5 to 16 who attend their nearest school and cannot walk there due to distance, route safety, or as a result of special educational needs, disability or mobility problems. There are additional rights to free transport for low income families, aimed at helping them exercise school choice.​The majority of central Government funding for home to school transport is made available to Local Authorities through the Local Government Finance Settlement (LGFS), administered by the Department for Levelling up, Housing and Communities. The Department for Education provides grant funding to Local Authorities as a contribution towards the cost of extended rights transport. This is £45.8 million in the 2023/24 financial year.​The Department recognises that Local Authorities are delivering services in a challenging environment. The Department is working with other Government departments and with the sector to understand the challenges they are facing.

Department for Transport

St Pancras Station: Immigration Controls

Bambos Charalambous: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether his Department is taking steps to help ensure the smooth flow of Eurostar passengers at St Pancras.

Huw Merriman: The Government recognises the important benefits international rail services provide for citizens and businesses, providing fast and sustainable connections to European destinations. Ensuring the smooth flow of passengers at St Pancras remains a priority for Government. My Department, together with the Home Office as the lead Department on borders, routinely engages with the French Government, Eurostar and other relevant parties in discussions on border-related matters and also to ensure that respective arrangements between the UK and French authorities work as effectively as possible.

Mid-Kent (Hayes) Line

Bob Stewart: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will hold discussions with Southeastern on the potential merits of reinstating Cannon Street services on the mid-Kent (Hayes) line in the context of recent levels of congestion at London Bridge station.

Huw Merriman: To reduce congestion at busy junctions and give better punctuality and fewer cancellations for Southeastern customers overall, all trains on the Hayes line now go to London Charing Cross. This means that customers looking to travel to Cannon Street need to change on to frequent connecting services at London Bridge or Lewisham. As the train operator, Southeastern are responsible for the detailed planning of their timetable and in doing so have to weigh up a range of factors such as passenger demand, operational impacts, customer feedback and financial constraints. Department officials hold regular discussions with the Southeastern covering all aspects of their service including timetable development. Recent scenes of crowding at London Bridge, which attracted media attention, were unrelated to the timetable.

Manchester-Southport Railway Line: Electrification

Damien Moore: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps his Department is taking to support electrification on the Southport to Wigan Rail line.

Huw Merriman: At present the Department does not have any plans to electrify the Southport to Wigan line. In the Transport Decarbonisation Plan, the Government committed to delivering a net zero rail network by 2050, with sustained carbon reductions in rail along the way. To help deliver this, we will electrify additional lines and deploy battery and hydrogen trains on some lines, where it makes economic and operational sense. The Great British Railways Transition Team will bring forward costed options for the Government to carefully consider in terms of overall deliverability and affordability.

Railways

Kate Osamor: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many and what proportion of train stations have had a reduction in the number of trains stopping per hour since January 2022.

Kate Osamor: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will make an estimate of the number and proportion of train stations that will have a reduction in the number of trains stopping per hour in 2023.

Huw Merriman: The Department does not hold all information relating to the number of trains stopping per hour by train station in 2022 and 2023.

Abellio Greater Anglia: Timetables

Kate Osamor: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether he has had discussions with Greater Anglia on its decision to end national rail services at Edmonton Green station from 21 May 2023.

Kate Osamor: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether he has statutory powers to prevent Greater Anglia ending their national rail services from serving Edmonton Green Station.

Huw Merriman: Detailed decisions about the development of the national rail timetable is for the rail operator and Network Rail. As part of Greater Anglia’s timetable planning process for the May 2023 timetable change, it has concentrated its services on the Lea Valley route. This change is to reduce congestion on the West Anglia route and deliver better, more consistent performance and greater resilience in the event of any disruption. Edmonton Green will continue to have frequent peak and off-peak services provided by London Overground.

Railways: Hertfordshire

Daisy Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether he has received (a) representations and (b) other correspondence from Members representing Hertfordshire constituencies on the proposed sale of public land by Hertfordshire County Council for a strategic rail freight Interchange.

Daisy Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether his Department has (a) had discussions with and (b) received correspondence from Hertfordshire County Council on changes to rail freight capacity requirements in Hertfordshire since 2014 in the last (a) 12 and (b) 36 months.

Huw Merriman: I can confirm that letters have been received regarding a strategic rail freight interchange at Radlett from Rt Hon Oliver Dowden MP in June 2020 and from Anne Main MP in July 2020. There have been no recent direct discussions with, or correspondence received from, Hertfordshire County Council in relation to changes to rail freight capacity requirements.

Department for Transport: Staff

Louise Haigh: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport,  pursuant to the Answer of 2 March 2023 to Question 153873 on Department for Transport: Staff, for what reason the correct data for April 2022 was not published on 2 March 2023 as stated in that Answer; and when he expects that data to be published.

Jesse Norman: The corrected data was published on 9 March 2023. Department for Transport Officials underestimated the time taken to correct and review information published to the gov.uk website. I have written to correct Question 153873.

Bexleyheath Line: Timetables

Abena Oppong-Asare: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether any hon. Members were informed of the additional services on the Southeastern Bexleyheath line prior to the announcement at Transport questions on 2 March 2023.

Huw Merriman: The decision was communicated to those Honourable Members who had met with me previously to discuss the matter, who were on the line of route and were not able to attend Transport Questions. All four Honourable Members on the line of route were sent the letter on 2 March, the same day I announced the decision in the House. The Honourable Member for Erith and Thamesmead was also sent the letter that day, at my request because, despite not being one of the four MPs on the line of route, I had also met her previously and wished for her to be updated as well.

Railway Stations: Bradford

Dan Jarvis: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, with reference to the oral contribution of the Minister of State for Transport to the Question from the hon. Member for Barnsley Central on 24 November 2022, Official Report, column 432, when his Department plans to publish its assessment on a new railway station for Bradford.

Huw Merriman: In my letter to the Transport Select Committee in December last year, I confirmed that I am looking at the case for better connections to Bradford and hope to set out further details in the Government’s full response to the Committee’s report on the Integrated Rail Plan.

Railways: Yorkshire and the Humber

Dan Jarvis: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, when his Department will publish the terms of reference for a study into high speed rail between Sheffield and Leeds.

Huw Merriman: The Terms of Reference for the HS2 to Leeds Study will be published soon. In the meantime, the Department has been working with Network Rail and key local stakeholders - including West Yorkshire Combined Authority and Leeds City Council –to prepare for the work anticipated in the HS2 to Leeds Study.

Driving Tests: Waiting Lists

Gill Furniss: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent assessment he has made of the (a) number of people currently waiting for a practical driving test and (b) average waiting time for a practical driving test.

Mr Richard Holden: As of 6 March 2023, there were 530,456 car practical driving tests booked and 61,000 driving tests available within the next 24-weeks.

Roads: Repairs and Maintenance

Gill Furniss: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what progress his Department has made on implementing the Road condition data and technology review, published in August 2021; and what his timetable is for the delivery of that review.

Mr Richard Holden: The Department for Transport (DfT) has chosen to take forward option 3 outlined in the Road condition data and technology review position paper; that ‘Local highway authorities can choose any surveying technology that aligns to a new industry data standard.’ DfT has now established the data standard steering group with representatives from both local highway authorities and industry experts and has procured the services of the British Standards Institute (BSI) in March 2022 and Transport Research Laboratory (TRL) as technical author in August 2022. These bodies will develop this new data standard, which will be inclusive of multiple technologies whilst providing robust comparable road condition data for national reporting by DfT. The DfT aims to publish the new data standard at the end of 2023, and is continuing to work with BSI, TRL, and the steering group of industry experts as part of the iterative development of the standard. Once the standard is in place in 2024, there will be a period to enable technology providers and local highway authorities to fully conform to it. The DfT intends to have a full switch to the new data standard from 2026 onwards.

National Highways: Planning

Sir Christopher Chope: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 2 March 2023 to Question 903834 on National Highways: Planning, if he will hold discussions with National Highways on taking steps to recommend the refusal of a planning application when applicants fail to provide sufficient information for more than one year.

Mr Richard Holden: The Government’s expectation is that all planning applications are determined in a timely manner and within statutory periods. The Town and Country Planning (Development Management Procedure) (England) Order 2015 (“the DMPO”) sets out the requirements for consultation with National Highways in respect of applications submitted under the Town and Country Planning Act 1990 and the provisions for the company to respond to such consultations. When consulted on an application for planning permission, National Highways will issue a formal response to the relevant local planning authority within statutory timeframes. Where appropriate, planning conditions will be recommended to mitigate any unacceptable impacts on the Strategic Road Network that are identified through the assessment process. The Town and Country Planning (Development Affecting Trunk Roads) Direction 2018 requires local authorities to refer a planning application to the Secretary of State where the authority has resolved to approve the application against the recommendation of National Highways. The Secretary of State must then decide whether to issue a direction to the Local Planning Authority with respect to application in question. As you will appreciate, the Secretary of State adopts a quasi-judicial role in the planning system and as such it would not be appropriate to discuss any individual cases.

Roads: Repairs and Maintenance

Sir Greg Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of ringfencing future funding to local authorities for the (a) repair of potholes and (b) resurfacing of public highways; and if he will make a statement.

Mr Richard Holden: The Department for Transport (DfT) allocates capital funding through the section 31 grant process so that local highways authorities can most effectively spend this funding on maintaining and improving their respective networks, based upon their local knowledge, circumstances, and priorities. Section 31 grant funding is not ringfenced as set out in the Local Government Act 2003; it is up to the highway authority how to spend this funding to fulfil its statutory duty under Section 41 of the Highways Act 1980. Local decision makers are democratically accountable for the decisions they take. DfT strongly encourages authorities to spend their allocations on highways maintenance activities and advocates a risk-based whole lifecycle asset management approach to local authority highways maintenance programmes. This considers all parts of the highway network, such as gulleys, bridges, cycleways, and lighting columns – and not just the fixing of potholes.

Schools: Cycling and Walking

Rachael Maskell: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether he has taken recent steps with the Secretary of State for Education to help improve (a) cycling and (b) walking infrastructure outside schools.

Jesse Norman: The Department for Transport has provided almost £400 million to local authorities since 2020/21 to improve active travel infrastructure, including outside schools. Active Travel England has recently announced a further £200 million of funding for local authorities and has encouraged bids that would enable more children to walk and cycle to school.

Cycling and Walking

Mr Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will undertake a future review of the effectiveness of the cycling and walking plan for England.

Jesse Norman: Progress on the delivery of the Government’s Gear Change plan will be outlined in the next statutory ‘Cycling and Walking Investment Strategy Report to Parliament’.

Schools: Transport

Rachael Maskell: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will make it her policy to require local authorities to (a) consult parents, teachers and pupils on transport infrastructure in a schools local community area and (b) to conduct an assessment of the safety of that transport.

Mr Richard Holden: One of the central considerations in transport planning is the way in which transport serves the local community and provides access to services like education. The Department for Transport therefore recommends that, as part of their Local Transport Plans (LTPs), local authorities pay particular attention to school travel and the infrastructure related to school transport. The Department also recommends that local authorities should engage local stakeholders, including parents, teachers and pupils, as they prepare their LTPs. Local authorities should always make personal and public safety a priority as they develop and deliver their LTPs. Local knowledge is required to determine what safety measures are appropriate in individual cases, making local authorities best placed to do this.

Buses: Exhaust Emissions

Simon Lightwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many bids for Zero Emission Bus Regional Areas funding have been received by his Department as of 8 March 2023; how many zero emission buses have been allocated Zero Emission Bus Regional Areas funding as of 8 March 2023; and how many zero emission buses funded through the Zero Emission Bus Regional Areas scheme have been delivered to operators as of 8 March 2023.

Mr Richard Holden: Nationally the Government has committed to support for 4,000 zero emission buses. This is being supported by a number of schemes, including the ZEBRA scheme. Across the UK, an estimated 3,452 Zero Emission Buses (ZEBs) have been funded so far. 23 local transport authorities applied to the Zero Emission Bus Regional Areas (ZEBRA) scheme. 17 of them were successful and awarded a share of £270 million funding. In March 2023 the Department announced an additional £25.3m funding to four local areas: City of York Council, Norfolk County Council, Portsmouth City Council & Hampshire County Council and the West Yorkshire Combined Authority. Table 1 presents information on the status of ZEBs that have been funded through the ZEBRA scheme. The numbers in Table 1 are not official statistics: they are based on the latest publicly available information and are therefore subject to change. Local Transport Authority Number of ZEBs ZEB Status  Cambridgeshire & Peterborough Combined Authority30FundedKent County Council33FundedLeicester City Council9690 ordered 6 on the roadMilton Keynes City Council*56FundedWarrington Borough Council**105FundedSouth Yorkshire Combined Authority27FundedNorfolk County Council7070 OrderedNorth Yorkshire County Council39FundedPortsmouth City Council & Hampshire County Council6262 OrderedBlackpool Council115FundedNottingham City Council7812 ordered 66 fundedGreater Manchester Combined Authority170FundedHertfordshire County Council***27FundedWest Midlands Combined Authority124FundedCity of York Council5353 OrderedWest Yorkshire Combined Authority13657 orderedOxfordshire County Council159159 Ordered* Following the operator's withdrawal of support, the Department is working closely with the local transport authority to determine next steps.** In response to changes to the local bus network the number of buses for the Warrington project has been reduced from 120 to 105.*** Following the operator's withdrawal of support, the Department is working closely with the local transport authority to determine next steps.

Buses: Exhaust Emissions

Simon Lightwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many successful bids for Zero Emission Bus Regional Areas funding have been (a) revised downwards and (b) withdrawn as of 8 March 2023; and how many individual zero emission buses those revisions and withdrawals represent.

Mr Richard Holden: £270 million funding was awarded from the Zero Emission Bus Regional Areas scheme to 17 local transport authorities. Since funding was originally awarded a number of projects have seen the number of buses that will be delivered revised upwards. In March 2023 the Department announced an additional £25.3m funding to four local areas for an additional 117 zero emission buses: City of York Council received £1.9m to deliver 9 additional buses.Norfolk County Council received £11.5m to deliver 55 additional buses.Portsmouth City Council and Hampshire County Council received £6.2m to deliver 28 additional buses.West Yorkshire Combined Authority received £5.7m to deliver 25 additional buses. Since the award of funding Warrington Borough Council has amended their project in response to changes to the local bus network. This has reduced the number of zero emission buses that will be delivered as part of this project from 120 to 105 buses. In November 2022 the Department was informed by Milton Keynes City Council (MKCC) that the bus operator had withdrawn support for the project. Since then, the Department has been working with MKCC to determine next steps. In March 2023 the Department was informed by Hertfordshire County Council (HCC) that the bus operator had withdrawn support for the project. The Department is working with HCC to determine next steps.

Bus Services

Dan Jarvis: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what information his Department holds on bus services that have been terminated by bus operators in England since 2010.

Mr Richard Holden: The Department does not hold this information.

Bus Services: Disability

Holly Mumby-Croft: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps his Department has taken to roll out audio-visual passenger information on buses in England.

Mr Richard Holden: We have required buses funded through the government’s Zero Emission Bus Regional Areas (ZEBRA) scheme to provide audible and visible information as standard. We also plan to require the provision of audible and visible information on local bus and coach services across Great Britain, and intend to introduce the Accessible Information Regulations shortly. We have allocated £3.55m to the Real Time Information Group, who will be supporting small operators with the upfront costs of the planned Regulations.

Blue Badge Scheme: Theft

David Simmonds: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what information his Department holds on the number of Blue Badges reported stolen in England in the last year.

David Simmonds: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will list the local authority areas that have reported the highest incidents of Blue Badge theft in the last year.

Mr Richard Holden: The Department for Transport publishes annual statistics in relation to the Blue Badge scheme in England. The latest available data shows that in the year ending March 2022, 6,183 badges were reported to be lost or stolen in England. Of these, 76% were reported to be lost, and 24% (1,497 badges) were stolen. Published statistics are not broken down by local authority.

Taxis: Licensing

Paul Howell: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many National Register of Taxi and Private Hire Licence Revocations and Refusals searches were submitted by (a) Newcastle City Council, (b) Sunderland City Council, (c) Hartlepool Borough Council, (d) Stockton-on-Tees Borough Council, (e) Darlington Borough Council and (f) Durham County Council in the last year for which data is available.

Mr Richard Holden: Use of the National Register for Refusals and Revocations (NR3) is recommended in the Department’s Statutory Taxi and Private Hire Vehicle Standards which was published in 2020. The Department is monitoring usage of the NR3 and communicates with local authorities on this matter regularly.Searches conducted by the local authorities listed over the last year:Licensing AuthorityDrivers Licensed (31 March 2022)NR3 Searches (March 2022 – Feb 2023)Darlington Borough Council365342Durham County Council1,405789Hartlepool Borough Council3524Newcastle City Council4,5760Stockton-on-Tees Borough Council744725Sunderland City Council737481

Bus Services

Wera Hobhouse: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, on what date the Bus Centre of Excellence website will be published.

Mr Richard Holden: An announcement regarding the Bus Centre of Excellence will be made soon.

Bus Services: Finance

Wera Hobhouse: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, with reference to the policy paper entitled Bus Back Better, published on 15 March 2021, how much funding his Department has allocated to the Bus Centre of Excellence programme since its establishment; and what the budget for this programme will be in the 2023-24 financial year.

Mr Richard Holden: The budget will be taken from the £15m allocated for strengthening bus capacity and capability in the period 2022/23 to 2024/25.

Department for Science, Innovation and Technology

Innovation and Research

Mr Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi: To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, with reference to the Independent Report entitled, Research, development and innovation (RDI) organisational landscape, Final Report and Recommendations, published in March 2023, what assessment she has made of the implications for her policies of the findings of that report.

George Freeman: My Rt. Hon. Friend the Secretary of State has issued a congratulatory letter to the Lead Reviewer, Sir Paul Nurse setting out that the Government will respond to the Review’s recommendations in the coming months: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/research-development-and-innovation-organisational-landscape-an-independent-review.

Research: Finance

Mr Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi: To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what recent assessment has she made of the adequacy of Government funding dedicated to enhancing the UK's research capabilities.

George Freeman: With less than 1% of the world’s population, the UK accounts for 6.3% of the world’s academic publications, and 13.4% of the world’s most highly cited academic publications. This share of highly cited publications places the UK 1st among the EU countries, and 3rd in the world. In the 2022 Autumn Statement, the Government committed to increasing public investment in R&D to £20 billion in 2024/25. This will support UK Research and Innovation’s £25 billion allocation to deliver research support across the UK through its nine councils, and partner organisations like the Met Office and National Physical Laboratory which receive public funding to drive research capabilities.

Counter Disinformation Unit: Freedom of Expression

Mr David Davis: To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of her Department's counter-disinformation unit on freedom of expression.

Paul Scully: The Counter Disinformation Unit (CDU) leads HMG’s operational and policy response to understand and counter disinformation and attempts to manipulate the information environment, with the potential to impact domestic audiences. In addition to the Russian invasion of Ukraine and COVID-19, the CDU has considered disinformation relating to key national events such as Operation London Bridge and elections.Freedom of expression and the media are essential qualities of any functioning democracy; people must be allowed to discuss and debate issues freely. The CDU’s work is consistent with the government’s principles and values on protecting freedom of expression and promoting a free, open, and secure internet.

Counter Disinformation Unit

Mr David Davis: To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what policy areas the Counter Disinformation Unit focuses on in addition to Covid-19 and Ukraine.

Paul Scully: The Counter Disinformation Unit (CDU) leads HMG’s operational and policy response to understand and counter disinformation and attempts to manipulate the information environment, with the potential to impact domestic audiences. In addition to the Russian invasion of Ukraine and COVID-19, the CDU has considered disinformation relating to key national events such as Operation London Bridge and elections.Freedom of expression and the media are essential qualities of any functioning democracy; people must be allowed to discuss and debate issues freely. The CDU’s work is consistent with the government’s principles and values on protecting freedom of expression and promoting a free, open, and secure internet.

Broadband: Standards

Dr Luke Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what progress her Department has made on delivering fast and reliable broadband throughout the UK.

Julia Lopez: Over 74% of premises across the UK can now access gigabit-capable broadband, up from just 6% in 2019.Project Gigabit is the Government’s £5 billion mission to deliver fast, reliable broadband across the UK. More than £1 billion of public subsidy has been made available to broadband suppliers to extend their gigabit-capable networks to rural and hard to reach parts of the country. To date, we have awarded six contracts in locations from Cornwall to Cumbria, and we have launched a further 15 procurements, which combined will deliver fast, reliable broadband to up to 748,000 premises that would have otherwise missed out.Support is also available for homes and businesses through the Gigabit Broadband Voucher Scheme. The voucher scheme provides a subsidy of up to £4,500 for residents and businesses in rural areas towards the cost of installing gigabit-capable broadband via local community broadband projects. To date, almost 84,000 vouchers have been used to connect premises to gigabit-capable broadband.

Broadband: Congleton

Fiona Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, whether her Department is taking steps to help support people who cannot access fibre broadband and are unable to (a) set up a community scheme and (b) fund the groundworks themselves in Congleton constituency.

Julia Lopez: As part of Project Gigabit, the Government’s £5 billion mission to deliver lightning-fast, reliable broadband across the UK, we have begun launching procurements that give subsidies to broadband suppliers to build gigabit-capable infrastructure to premises that will not be reached by suppliers’ commercial plans alone.The constituency of Congleton is included in our Cheshire procurement. We are currently engaging with the market and expect to launch the procurement in the summer.Premises across Cheshire are also continuing to benefit from an earlier Superfast Programme contract being delivered by the supplier Airband, which is expected to provide access to gigabit-capable broadband to almost 6,000 premises by March 2024.

Broadband

Mr Gregory Campbell: To ask Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what recent estimate she has made of when at least 85 per cent of households in (a) England, (b) Scotland, (c) Wales and (d) Northern Ireland will have access to gigabit-capable broadband.

Julia Lopez: The Government is committed to working with broadband suppliers so that 85% of UK premises can access gigabit-capable broadband by 2025.We are on track to achieve our target. At present, over 74% of UK premises can access a gigabit-capable connection, up from just 6% in January 2019.In Northern Ireland, 90.6% of premises already have access to gigabit-capable broadband. This is the highest percentage of any of the four UK nations, followed by England (75.5%), Scotland (68.3%) and Wales (59.5%).

Broadband: Rural Areas

Sir Greg Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what recent progress her Department has made on the delivery of fast and reliable broadband to rural areas.

Julia Lopez: We are making excellent progress with Project Gigabit, the Government’s £5 billion mission to deliver fast, reliable broadband across the UK. Over 74% of UK premises can now access a gigabit-capable broadband connection, up from just 6% in January 2019.More than £1 billion of public subsidy has been made available to broadband suppliers to extend their gigabit-capable networks to rural and hard to reach parts of the country. To date, we have awarded six contracts in locations from Cornwall to Cumbria, and we have launched a further 15 procurements, which combined will deliver fast, reliable broadband to up to 748,000 premises that would have otherwise missed out.Support is also available for homes and businesses in rural areas through the Gigabit Broadband Voucher Scheme. The scheme provides a subsidy of up to £4,500 for residents and businesses towards the cost of installing gigabit-capable broadband. To date, almost 84,000 vouchers have been used to connect premises to gigabit-capable broadband.

Prime Minister

Home Office

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Prime Minister, if he will make a commitment to publish the reply to the letter of 8 March 2023 to him from the General Secretary of the FDA on a communication from the Home Secretary to Conservative Party members on the announcement of the Illegal Migration Bill; if he will instruct the Independent Adviser on Ministers’ Interests to conduct an investigation into whether the Home Secretary has upheld her obligations under paragraph 5.1 of the Ministerial Code to uphold the political impartiality of the civil service; and if he will make a statement.

Jeremy Quin: I have been asked to reply to the hon. Member’s question. I have responded to the letter on behalf of HM Government. I will place a copy in the Library of the House, which outlines the Government’s position on this matter.

Ministry of Justice

Monuments: Vandalism

Sarah Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many people have been prosecuted for criminal damage to memorials since that offence was introduced; and what sentences were issued to people prosecuted for that act.

Edward Argar: For criminal damage offences, the specific target of the criminal damage is not recorded in the Court Proceedings Database and so it is not possible to distinguish criminal damage to memorials from wider criminal damage. This information may be held on court records but to examine individual court records would be of disproportionate costs.

Social Security Benefits: Appeals

Colleen Fletcher: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what proportion of appeals to the tribunals service in (a) Coventry, (b) the West Midlands and (c) England relating to (i) personal independence payments, (ii) employment and support allowance, (iii) jobseeker's allowance and (iv) universal credit were successful in (A) the most recent period for which figures are available and (B) each of the last three years.

Mike Freer: Information about the outcomes of appeals in the First-tier Tribunal (Social Security and Child Support) (SSCS) is published at: www.gov.uk/government/collections/tribunals-statistics.SSCS appeals are listed into the hearing venue nearest to the appellant’s home address. The published data (which can be viewed at the link above) provide information about the outcomes of (i) Personal Independence Payment (PIP), (ii) Employment and Support Allowance (ESA) and (iv) Universal Credit (UC) appeals for hearing venues covering (a) Coventry, (b) the West Midlands and (c) England for the period requested.The table below contains the requested information for (iii)Job Seekers Allowance (JSA): CoventryWest Midlands1England22019/20~27%39%2020/21~~27%2021/2280%42%28%Q1 2022/23P~26%25%Q2 2022/23p0%~17%Q3 2022/23p~~23%Notes:SSCS data is normally registered to the venue nearest to the appellant’s home address. We cannot retrieve data based on the appellant’s actual address but can produce reports detailing the numbers of cases that were dealt with at one of our Regional centres or heard at a specific venue.The proportion of successful appeals is based on the number of cases found in favour of the appellant at a tribunal hearing as a percentage of the cases heard at a tribunal hearing.Data up to December 2022 in line with latest published statistics.Although care is taken when processing and analysing the data, the details are subject to inaccuracies inherent in any large-scale case management system and are the best data that are available.These data may differ slightly to that of the published statistics as these data were run on a different date.1. West Midlands includes the venues: Birmingham, Wolverhampton, Walsall, Coventry, Nuneaton, Stoke, Telford and Worcester2. Excludes SSCS Scotland Region and Wales Region.~ Suppressed in line with official published statsP Provisional, in line with published data.

Employment Tribunals Service

Angela Rayner: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, pursuant to the Answer of 28 February 2023 to Question 146991 on Employment Tribunals Service, whether data on mean age at disposal has been collected since March 2021.

Mike Freer: This data is not currently available and HMCTS is working to incorporate data from new systems as part of our reform Management Information programme of work.

Criminal Legal Aid Advisory Board: Public Appointments

Bob Blackman: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, for what reason his Department has not appointed a Chair to the Criminal Legal Aid Advisory Board as recommended in the Independent Review into Criminal Legal Aid; and what his Department's timetable is for making that appointment.

Mike Freer: The Criminal Legal Aid Advisory Board (CLAAB) was established following Lord Bellamy’s Criminal Legal Aid Independent Review (CLAIR) recommendation that an Advisory Board be established to take a wider view and encourage a more joined-up approach to criminal legal aid within the criminal justice system.Board meetings take place quarterly and there have been two meetings to date - the first on 28 October 2022 and the second on 24 January 2023.The CLAAB’s membership currently includes representatives from the Bar Council, the Law Society, Criminal Bar Association, London Criminal Courts Solicitors’ Association, Criminal Law Solicitors’ Association, Chartered Institute of Legal Executives (CILEX) and Ministry of Justice officials.We are currently considering the issue of the Chair of the Board and will make an announcement in due course.

Ministry of Justice: Consultants

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what the cost to the public purse was of spending on external consultants by (a) HM Courts and Tribunals Service and (b) HM Prison and Probation Service in (i) 2020, (ii) 2021 and (iii) 2022; and whether any of that spending related to the preparation of funding bids to (A) his Department and (B) HM Treasury.

Mike Freer: The spend on consultants for the period is listed on the table below.External Management Consultants Spend by Financial Spend, £000’s 2019/202020/212021/22Her Majesty’s Prison and Probation Service2,9425,0464,935Her Majesty’s Courts and Tribunals Service5,782478151At this point, we could not identify any spending related to the preparation of funding bids and to look on each individual contract would have disproportionate costs to disaggregate the spend.The service provided under that spend had a broad range of outcomes, including among others: probation reform, the prison estate transformation program, prison reform and reducing reoffending.

Powers of Attorney: Applications

Mr Jacob Rees-Mogg: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, pursuant to the Answer of 7 March 2023 to Question 156952, how many administrative staff worked between midnight and 6am in each of the last six months.

Mike Freer: To process Lasting Powers of Attorney (LPA) applications, the Office of the Public Guardian (OPG) has staff working day shifts and evening shifts, and both shifts then have further overtime hours. While staff do not routinely work between 12am and 6am, for evening shift staff who work from 4pm-10pm, overtime hours are available from 10pm-2am. The below data shows the number of staff who have taken that opportunity to work overtime at least once in each month, but not all of these staff will have worked beyond 12am while working overtime.Staff do not work beyond 2am. The table below provides the total number of administrative evening shift staff who have worked overtime beyond 10pm. It does not include day shift staff who have worked overtime. MonthSept 2022Oct  2022Nov  2022Dec  2022Jan  2023Feb  2023Total number of staff who have worked overtime (i.e. past 10pm) each month.322524253627

Divorce Courts: Bury St Edmunds

Rosie Duffield: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what the average length of time taken by the Bury St Edmunds Regional Divorce Centre to process an application for a decree nisi was in the latest period for which data are available.

Mike Freer: The information requested is not held centrally. HMCTS does not hold the data requested that measures that parameter on the average length of time taken by the Bury St Edmunds Regional Divorce Centre to process an application for a decree nisi.HMCTS is working to standardise process management and systems within Regional Divorce work in the future.

CAFCASS: Working Hours

Liz Saville Roberts: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, on how many occasions staff working at the Children and Family Court Advisory and Support Service have entered data on work computer systems during the weekend in each of the last 12 months.

Liz Saville Roberts: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, on how many occasions staff working for the Children and Family Court Advisory and Support Service have entered data on work computer systems after (a) 6.00pm, (b) 8.00pm and (c) 10.00pm in each of the last 12 months.

Mike Freer: The information requested is not held centrally by the Ministry of Justice.

Employment Tribunals Service

Rachel Hopkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what the cost of the provision of non-legal members to Employment Tribunals was in each of the last five years for which figures are available.

Mike Freer: Expenditure by HM Courts & Tribunals Service attributed to non-legal members in the Employment Tribunal in 5 financial years from 2017-18 to 2021-22:Financial YearExpenditure (£m)2017-183.142018-192.972019-203.412020-212.622021-224.56Expenditure includes member fees, associated pension, travel, and subsistence costs. It does not include costs of training non-legal members incurred by Judicial Office, nor the cost of employer’s national insurance contribution incurred in respect of non-legal members as these cannot be disaggregated from costs for all fee-paid members.The increase in expenditure in 2021-22 followed the implementation of a pension scheme for non-legal members. A change to eligibility meant non-legal members were offered access to the National Employment Savings Trust (NEST) pension scheme, with costs reflected from April 2021.The expenditure excludes backdated pension contributions paid to Employment Tribunal non-legal members covering their eligibility for the period November 2012 - March 2020; which cannot be disaggregated from costs for all jurisdictions (£7.09m for all jurisdictions).

Attorney General

War Crimes: Russia

Valerie Vaz: To ask the Attorney General, what assessment she has made of the ability of Ukraine and its international partners to (a) gather and (b) analyse evidence of Russian war crimes for the Special Tribunal in Ukraine.

Victoria Prentis: On 20 January 2023, the Foreign Secretary announced that the UK will play a leading role in a core group of likeminded partners to pursue criminal accountability for Russia’s illegal invasion of Ukraine. Alongside other international partners invited by Ukraine, the UK will shape thinking on how to ensure criminal accountability for Russia’s aggression against Ukraine. An investigation into the Crime of Aggression by any new tribunal could complement established mechanisms investigating war crimes, including the International Criminal Court and Ukraine’s domestic investigations and prosecutions. In joining this additional core group focused on Crimes of Aggression, the UK will complement its support on those other mechanisms in pursuit of accountability for war crimes, crimes against humanity, or genocide. Investigations for those international crimes are well underway, supported by UK initiatives such as the UK-US-EU Atrocity Crimes Advisory Group, and judicial training by Sir Howard Morrison KC and Uk-based Advocates for International Development. On 4 March 2023, it was announced that an International Centre for the Prosecution of Crimes of Aggression against Ukraine will be established in The Hague, within the structure of Eurojust’s Joint Investigation Team for Ukraine.

War Crimes: Russia

Valerie Vaz: To ask the Attorney General, what progress has been made on setting up a Special Tribunal on Ukraine.

Victoria Prentis: On 20 January 2023, the Foreign Secretary announced that the UK will play a leading role in a core group of likeminded partners to pursue criminal accountability for Russia’s illegal invasion of Ukraine. Alongside other international partners invited by Ukraine, the UK will shape thinking on how to ensure criminal accountability for Russia’s aggression against Ukraine. The first meeting of the core group took place in Prague on 26 January 2023. On 4 March 2023 at the United for Justice conference in Lviv, it was announced that an International Centre for the Prosecution of Crimes of Aggression against Ukraine will be established in The Hague, within the structure of Eurojust’s Joint Investigation Team for Ukraine. I was delighted to represent the UK at that conference: this government stands shoulder-to-shoulder with Ukraine in its search for justice.

Department for Culture, Media and Sport

VisitBritain: Staff

Navendu Mishra: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, how many VisitBritain staff are based in the US.

Julia Lopez: VisitBritain has 14 staff members based in the US across two offices in New York and Los Angeles. This includes their International Director who is based in New York and oversees all of VisitBritain’s international markets and operations.

Tourism: Whisky

Martin Docherty-Hughes: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment she has made of the contribution of the Scotch Whisky industry to the tourist industry in (a) Scotland and (b) the UK.

Julia Lopez: Research by VisitBritian found that 82% of international respondents said that ‘a good variety of food and drink to try’ is a key driver when selecting a destination for an international break. This is why the UK’s unique food and drink experiences are a key pillar of their international marketing campaigns and PR activity.The whisky industry is recognised as the UK’s largest single food and drink sector, accounting for 25% of the UK’s food and drink exports and 80% of Scottish food and drink exports, impacting 200 markets worldwide. The whisky sector generates £3.3 billion directly to the UK economy, and totals £5 billion when Gross Value Added (GVA) is added to the overall to UK Gross Domestic Product (GDP). Research by VisitScotland found that 20% of respondents stated they visited awhisky distillery on their holiday in Scotland, making it one of the top activities for overnight tourists on their trip to Scotland.Visits to whisky distilleries in Scotland have increased by two thirds since 2010, and over 1000 people are now directly employed in tourism roles which equates to 10% of the industry’s direct employment in Scotland.

Arts: York

Rachael Maskell: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what discussions she has had with Cabinet colleagues on the digital creative sector in York; and what steps she is taking to support the growth of that sector.

Julia Lopez: This Government is committed to supporting R&D and innovation at the nexus between digital and creativity. This is why we, through UK Research and Investment (UKRI) and its bodies including the Arts and Humanities Research Council and Innovate UK, have committed over £100m to programmes supporting R&D in the creative industries over the course of this Spending Review.We have supported the digital and creative sectors in York through the XR Stories Cluster, which is part of the Arts and Humanities Research Council’s Creative Industries Clusters Programme. The XR Stories Cluster is a collaboration between the University of York, Screen Yorkshire, the British Film Institute and local industry. It provided £15 million in investment and expertise for the region’s screen industries to undertake R&D and innovation.DCMS and UKRI also recently announced £2.6 million of further funding that will consolidate learnings from the Clusters programme, helping to inform further action to support our growth objectives for the sector, which will be set out in further detail in the forthcoming Government Creative Industries Sector Vision.

Northern Ireland Office

Floods: Foyle

Colum Eastwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, whether his Department is planning to provide support to home owners in Foyle who have experienced persistent flooding and who have been unable to get appropriate home insurance.

Mr Steve Baker: The UK Government supports households in Northern Ireland through a joint initiative with insurers, the Flood Re Scheme, which ensures that domestic property insurance continues to be affordable in areas of flood risk. The Northern Ireland Department for Infrastructure and the Department for Communities provide financial support in the event of persistent flooding in Northern Ireland. This includes the Flooding Scheme, which provides emergency financial assistance to people affected by severe flooding. I continue to urge parties in Northern Ireland to restore the Northern Ireland Executive and ensure a fully functioning Northern Ireland Assembly so that matters like flooding can be addressed by those elected to do so.